🔶 Germany receives its first F-35 fighter jet

The American defense contractor “Lockheed Martin” will deliver Germany’s first F-35 fighter jet ordered from it on Friday, September 18 (27 Shahrivar).

Boris Pistorius, Germany’s defense minister, will receive the fighter jet symbolically.

Pistorius, a politician from the Social Democratic Party of Germany, said that the arrival of this fighter jet “marks a new era” for the German Air Force. He described the F-35 as the “most modern combat aircraft in the world.”

According to Germany’s defense minister, the F-35 fighters are distinguished by their stealth capability, extensive communications with other systems, and powerful sensors.

Pistorius also emphasized that the fighter jet can collect large volumes of data and quickly combine them to create a comprehensive picture of the operational situation.

The F-35 is difficult for enemy radars to detect due to its special design and external coating.

As Germany’s defense minister said, cooperation with 19 other countries, which are involved in the production of these fighter jets, provides extensive opportunities for training, exercises, and operations, and makes the participating countries stronger alongside one another.

One of the main goals of purchasing these aircraft is Germany’s participation in the so-called NATO “nuclear sharing” program; the deterrence plan of this alliance in which some allied countries participate in missions related to U.S. nuclear weapons.

Training for German pilots and technical personnel in the United States began this year. In the first phase, technical courses will be held, and in the final three months of the year flight training with fighter jets belonging to Germany in the state of Arkansas, in the U.S. state of Arkansas, will begin.

By the end of this year, six of these fighter jets are expected to be delivered. The first eight F-35s for Germany will remain in the United States for training.

The last of the ordered fighter jets is expected to be delivered in 2029. The German defense company “Rheinmetall” also participates in the production of these aircraft and will produce the midsection of their fuselage in Germany.

The first F-35s are expected to be deployed at Büchel Air Base in the Eifel region of Germany by the end of next year. This military base will be extensively renovated to host the new fighter jets at a cost of two billion euros.

With this program, Germany provides capabilities for NATO nuclear deterrence without being a nuclear power itself. Germany has waived possessing its own nuclear weapons in accordance with international legal commitments.

Hashtags: ["DW Farsi"]