Key Points and Summary – After losing the F-47 NGAD contract, Lockheed Martin is pushing a “Ferrari” F-35—an uprated, fifth-gen-plus variant that borrows tech from its NGAD bid. CEO Jim Taiclet says talks with the Pentagon are “very active,” with encouraging feedback, though no contracts exist.
– Right now, the plane has one mission: to gain enough support to get built. And a present, no one really is sure what will happen
U.S. Air Force Maj. Kristin “BEO” Wolfe, F-35A Lightning II Demonstration Team pilot and commander, flies a U.S. Air Force F-35 during the Dubai Airshow, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 13, 2023. The U.S. maintains a highly agile fighting force, which leverages the most advanced training and platforms to dominate the warfighting landscape for the long-term security and stability of the region. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Kaitlyn Ergish)
-Lockheed hints 1,000–1,500 of the ~2,300 undelivered F-35s could be built to this spec, targeting engine, sensor, weapons, range, and software upgrades—at roughly $150M per jet, per earlier reporting.
-The effort rides the jet’s global footprint (19 partner nations) and recent combat relevance, while Trump’s separate idea for a twin-engine “F-55” is widely viewed as a near-total redesign and unlikely.
The Ferrari F-35 Might Be Coming Soon…
Back in April, around the time that it missed out on the contract for the next-generation fighter that would eventually be known as the F-47, Lockheed Martin’s CEO talked about wanting to develop a “Ferrari” version of the F-35, which would use the tech that Lockheed had developed as part of its unsuccessful bid.
It would go into a “supercharged” fifth-generation fighter, also known as a “Ferrari” version.
“There are techniques and capabilities … that were developed for [our NGAD bid] that we can now apply here,” Lockheed CEO Jim Taiclet said in an April earnings call, as reported by Defense News. “We’re basically going to take the [F-35′s] chassis and turn it into a Ferrari.”
He had promised “80 percent of six-gen capability at half the price.”
“Very Active”
Now, it appears Lockheed is moving forward with such plans.
According to Breaking Defense, Taiclet has told investors that the company is in “very active” talks with the Pentagon about such a fighter becoming a reality.
“There’s a very active engagement at an extremely high level with the Department of Defense, and I expect it’ll be taken to the White House sometime soon, hopefully, to consider this kind of concept,” the CEO said this week at a Morgan Stanley conference.
Taiclet added that the company has received “encouraging feedback” on the idea, adding that there is “significant interest in the government about discussing aircraft modernization writ large.”
The CEO did make clear that no contracts have been signed.
A U.S. Air Force F-35 Lightning II from the 48th Fighter Wing approaches a KC-135 Stratotanker from the 100th Air Refueling Wing during an aerial refueling mission as part of combat readiness inspection Skyway Chariot over the North Sea, May 8, 2025. Skyway Chariot was designed to assess how effectively the 100th ARW could operate under constrained conditions in the face of a potential threat. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Aidan Martínez)
But he added, according to the Breaking Defense transcript, that of the 2,300 F-35s that have not been delivered yet, somewhere between 1000 and 1500 could be part of the “fifth-gen plus” version that’s in development.
He also said that Lockheed has “70,000 engineers and scientists… working on really interesting stuff all the time.”
A Good Idea?
Air and Space Forces Magazine, in May, looked at what the “Ferrari” version of the F-35 might look like. The F-35s would conceivably cost about $150 million per plane, and would include upgrades to engines, sensors, weapons, range, and more.
The report added that it doesn’t appear that Lockheed consulted with the Air Force before announcing the plans.
F-35 Joint Program Office told the outlet that “the discussion remains entirely notional at this stage.”
However, the new report states that Lockheed has in fact, engaged with the Pentagon.
A Global Footprint
According to the official F-35 website, the fighter is widely deployed around the world, including to 19 nations that are allied with the United States. In addition to much of Europe, F-35s are used by Canada, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, and Australia. This makes it an important jet for Western alliances.
“Within the NATO framework, our F-35s make a significant contribution to the defence of our collective security, Ruben Brekelmans, the Dutch defense minister, said this week after the engagement. “This is precisely what we stand ready to do.”
Just this week, Dutch F-35s shot down multiple drones from Russia that had crossed into Poland, leading to an unprecedented engagement and even Poland invoking NATO’s Article 4.
Trump’s Twin Engines?
In May, while on a visit to Qatar for a business roundtable, President Donald Trump expressed interest in a potential two-engine version of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, to be called the “F-55.”
Reuters said at the time that such a jet would likely cost billions of dollars and take years to produce.
Breaking Defense reported at the time that Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall was “mystified” by Trump’s proposal, and that creating it would be a highly difficult feat of engineering.
“A two-engine version of F-35 would be virtually a complete redesign,” Kendall told the outlet at the time. “It’s an option that was never presented and that we never considered, to my knowledge.”
The outlet described Trump’s idea as in keeping with the president’s “penchant for shocking the defense industry.”
About the Author: Stephen Silver
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist, and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review, and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. For over a decade, Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, national security, technology, and the economy. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
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Mark
September 14, 2025 at 5:20 pm
A Ferrari version? So the point is to make something very expensive that’s not very usable and breaks down all the time?