Canada orders first batch of Lightning IIs

In March 2022, the Canadian government announced it had chosen the Lockheed-Martin F-35A Lightning II as it next fighter jet to replace the country’s ageing CF-18 Hornets.

Negotiations with Lockheed-Martin for a contract for 88 F-35A Lightning IIs started soon after. As already announced at the time, the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) has been seeking an early delivery of one squadron ahead of the delivery schedule of the main batch of jets.

An official announcement will likely be made in January 2023, but sources in Ottawa however state the first steps have been taken to order a batch of 16 aircraft. The total number of 88 aircraft will be ordered in various batches, enabling gradual delivery in the period 2026-2032.

The Canadian Press reported last week (half December 2022) that Canada will not send CF-18 Hornets to Romania next year to patrol NATO airspace for Russian incursions. This will be the first time that the Canadian fighters will be absent from the skies over Europe since 2017.

That decision was partly blamed on the need to upgrade the CF-18s to ensure they can continue to fight and defend themselves from adversaries until they can be replaced by the F-35A. To lessen the burden on the Hornet fleet, the country has taken over 18 operational F/A-18A/Bs from Australia, which are currently being included in the strength, after modification to Canadian standards.

Photos (just illustrative) by David M. Parody (Scramble Archive) and Andrew Cline (RCAF CF-18)