The F-35 TR-3 crisis highlights a shift in 2026 military readiness: software is now the primary "failure point" rather than mechanical hardware.

Attempts to provide upgraded software for F-35 jets have “stagnated” and no new combat capability was delivered last year, according to the annual report by the Pentagon’s testing office, even as the ...

The U.S. Dept. of Defense issued a further $27.2 million to Lockheed Martin Aeronautics within the context of a previously awarded contract for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The original, December ...

The Navy awarded Lockheed a $133 million contract modification to continue providing F-35 flight test support for U.S. military services.

US Air Force and Energy Department personnel load a pair of unarmed B61-12 nuclear gravity bombs onto an F-35 at Hill Air Force Base on Aug. 19 for testing. The Energy Department and Air Force in ...

F-35 TR-3 software upgrades stalled in testing, delaying new combat capability and raising cybersecurity concerns.

The F-35 Lightning II was used in August 2025 to successfully evaluate three B61-12 test assets during a multi-day test campaign. Sandia National Laboratories and the National Nuclear Security ...

Modernization efforts for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program are "significantly behind schedule," according to an annual report from the Pentagon's director of operational test and evaluation, ...

Testing office says Lockheed Martin's TR-3 software faced stability issues and capability gaps during evaluation.

The F-35 will also serve as a test bed for technologies that will become commonplace in the next generation of jets. Flying in coordination with AI-enabled drones will become a staple of any ...