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Select Committee · Public Accounts Committee

The UK’s F-35 stealth fighter capability

Status: Open Opened: 10 Jul 2025 7 recommendations 23 conclusions 1 report

The F-35 is a fifth-generation stealth fighter aircraft, which is able to enter contested environments undetected. As part of a US-led programme, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) purchased and is using the F-35b variant, which can operate from land and aircraft carriers. The UK publicly committed to purchasing 138 F-35 aircraft from the global F-35 …

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
51st Report - The UK’s F-35 stealth fighter capability HC 1232 31 Oct 2025 30 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

2 items
2 Recommendation 51st Report - The UK’s F-35 stealth fig… Accepted

Set out plans to ensure F-35 standoff capability and increase aircraft availability.

The UK’s F-35 does not have a standoff weapon, and aircraft availability is inadequate. The Department states that its biggest concern with its F-35 fleet is the lack of a standoff weapon to strike ground targets from a safe distance. The Department wants to equip its F-35s with the Spear …

Government response. The government agreed to increase F-35 availability by increasing aircraft engineers, supporting efforts to improve spares availability, investing in F-35 technical infrastructure, and enhancing supporting enablers, with a full report on availability to follow later.
HM Treasury
27 Recommendation 51st Report - The UK’s F-35 stealth fig… Accepted

Department's F-35 whole-life cost approach hinders sound long-term financial management

The Department told us that its approach to whole-life costs gave it the right cost information for the management decisions it needs to make. It argued that coming up with a whole life cost out to 2069 was not helpful for budgeting because the Defence budget deals with much shorter …

Government response. The department will continue to strengthen its approach to whole life cost modelling as part of the work that is being taken forward under Defence Reform. The department already develops whole life cost models that extend beyond equipment costs, for …
HM Treasury

Oral evidence sessions

1 session
Date Witnesses
8 Sep 2025 Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton KCB · Ministry of Defence, Air Commodore Nick Lowe · Ministry of Defence, David Williams · Daily Mail, Dominic Wilson · Ministry of Defence View ↗

Correspondence

4 letters
DateDirectionTitle
14 May 2026 To cttee Letter from the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Defence relating to The …
20 Apr 2026 To cttee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence to the Chair of …
26 Mar 2026 From cttee Letter to the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Defence relating to Treasu…
16 Oct 2025 To cttee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence relating to the …