The U.S. Navy has awarded The Boeing Company a contract valued at more than $20 billion for the full-scale development phase of the F/A-XX Strike Fighter, cementing the manufacturer as the sole provider of America’s sixth-generation combat aircraft.

Announced on September 29, 2026, by the U.S. Department of War, the award advances the strike fighter component of the Navy’s Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program. The F/A-XX is slated to begin augmenting and eventually replacing the service’s legacy fleet of Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers in the 2030s.

Advancing naval air superiority

The newly announced contract procures multiple test aircraft for ground, airworthiness, systems, and weapons integration testing. The F/A-XX is designed as a carrier-based fighter featuring extended range, an open mission systems architecture, and interoperability with both manned and unmanned platforms, including Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA).

Department of War officials emphasized the strategic necessity of the program amid evolving global threats.

“The F/A-XX platform represents a crucial, non-negotiable investment in America’s national security and long-term air combat capabilities. We are joining forces with Boeing to field these capabilities rapidly, ensuring our warfighters possess the lethal and highly networked systems required to deter aggression, project undisputed power, and secure absolute air superiority.”

The statement from Michael P. Duffey, Under Secretary of War for Acquisition and Sustainment, was echoed by Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao, who described the aircraft as a generational leap in air superiority that will provide naval aviators with unparalleled combat capabilities.

Consolidating the sixth-generation industrial base

The F/A-XX competition in its late stages was primarily a contest between Boeing and Northrop Grumman. Boeing’s victory fundamentally reshapes the defense aerospace market. Combined with the March 2025 contract to develop the U.S. Air Force’s next-generation fighter, the F-47, Boeing now controls both of the Pentagon’s premier future fighter programs.

As reported by Breaking Defense, the award effectively excludes competitors Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin from the sixth-generation fighter market. Lockheed Martin will continue to produce the fifth-generation F-35C Joint Strike Fighter for the Navy, but the future of carrier-based air dominance now rests entirely with Boeing.

Steve Parker, President and Chief Executive Officer of Boeing Defense, Space & Security, stated that the company is prepared to execute both massive defense programs simultaneously.

“Delivering two advanced fighters in parallel was always our plan, and we invested accordingly,” Parker said in a corporate release. “We are ready and able to build multiple concurrent future combat aircraft franchise programs.”

To support this production, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is constructing a secure manufacturing facility in St. Louis, Missouri. The company noted that the facility will function as part of an all-digital aerospace design and manufacturing system uniquely suited to build multiple products with next-generation capabilities.

Congressional funding and operational timeline

The contract award follows a significant injection of capital from lawmakers. Congress appropriated $972 million for F/A-XX research and development in the fiscal 2026 defense appropriations bill. According to Aviation Week, this funding level represented a substantial increase over the initial $74 million requested by the Defense Department, a change driven by congressional frustration over slow program progress and repeated contract extensions.

With full-scale development now funded and contracted, Boeing and the Navy are targeting the 2030s for the initial fielding of the F/A-XX, at which point the aircraft will begin to take over the carrier strike group roles currently fulfilled by the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and the electronic warfare-focused EA-18G Growler.

AirPro News analysis

Boeing’s sweep of the F-47 and F/A-XX programs represents a historic consolidation of the U.S. tactical aircraft industrial base. Just a few years ago, Boeing faced the prospect of its fighter production lines going cold as legacy F/A-18 and F-15EX orders wound down. Now, the company holds an undisputed monopoly on the next generation of air dominance.

For competitors Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, the loss of the F/A-XX restricts their future tactical aviation portfolios to legacy fifth-generation production and unmanned systems. This outcome fundamentally reshapes the aerospace defense market for the next three decades, placing the burden of delivering the military’s most complex and expensive future combat systems squarely on Boeing’s St. Louis facilities.

Announced by the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, the Lot 7 agreement secures the full intended aircraft quantity ahead of the fiscal year-end deadline by utilizing congressionally provided reconciliation funding to offset defense industrial base inflation.

Navigating production and inflation hurdles

The F-15EX program has encountered significant manufacturing hurdles over the past two years. According to the DAF press release, the Lot 7 negotiations required an integrated team to navigate the effects of a 2025 production disruption and broader economic inflation across the defense sector.

Air Data News reported that Boeing has faced specific challenges at its St. Louis, Missouri, assembly line. These constraints included forward fuselage manufacturing issues and a reported labor strike that impacted the facility, leading to delays in subsequent production lots.

Despite these constraints, the DAF maintained the procurement quantity. Earlier Air Force budget documents indicated a planned Lot 7 purchase of 21 aircraft, but the final contract secured 22 airframes. The official announcement noted that the preservation of buying power was achieved through reconciliation funding.

Brig. Gen. Timothy Helfrich, Portfolio Acquisition Executive for the Fighters and Advanced Aircraft Directorate, stated in the DAF release that the contract reflects a disciplined approach to executing available resources while balancing the realities affecting defense production.

“The team remained focused on affordability, production continuity and delivering the aircraft needed to modernize the U.S. Air Force’s fighter fleet for the threats we face today and into the future,” Helfrich said.

Expanding fleet requirements and delivery timelines

The Boeing Company’s Defense, Space & Security division manufactures the F-15EX Eagle II. The aircraft is a modern, multirole heavy fighter that builds on the legacy F-15 design, incorporating advanced avionics, large-area displays, a digital backbone architecture, and enhanced survivability capabilities. It was initially procured to replace the aging U.S. Air Force fleet of F-15C and F-15D fighters reaching the end of their service lives.

While the Air Force originally planned to cap F-15EX procurement at 98 aircraft, recent force structure plans have expanded the requirement to more than 260 airframes. Air Data News notes that the expanded fleet will also replace a portion of the F-15E Strike Eagle fleet.

The Lot 7 award brings the total number of F-15EX aircraft under contract to 120. Boeing previously secured 98 fighters through Lot 6, which was awarded on January 22, 2025, for 18 aircraft.

Delivery schedules have shifted due to the recent production disruptions. Boeing will continue delivering aircraft from the third production lot (Lot 3) through the remainder of 2026. However, deliveries from Lot 4, initially targeted for 2026, are now scheduled to begin in 2028.

To meet the expanded fleet requirements, Boeing and the Air Force are working to accelerate production at the St. Louis facility to a target rate of two F-15EX fighters per month.

AirPro News analysis

The expansion of the F-15EX program from a capped 98-aircraft replacement initiative to a 260-plus fleet requirement underscores a strategic shift in Air Force force structure planning. Securing 22 aircraft in Lot 7, one more than initially budgeted, demonstrates a prioritization of heavy fighter capacity even as the defense industrial base grapples with inflation and supply chain fragility. The two-year delay in Lot 4 deliveries highlights the persistent gap between procurement ambitions and manufacturing realities. We expect the St. Louis assembly line’s ability to stabilize at the target rate of two aircraft per month will be the primary metric for the program’s health over the next fiscal year.

GE Aerospace and Poland’s Military Aviation Works No. 1 have finalized an agreement establishing a licensed MRO facility in Dęblin for T700 and CT7 helicopter engines.

Announced in a joint press release on September 28, 2026, the partnership fulfills a localization commitment tied to the Polish Ministry of National Defense’s 2024 procurement of 96 Boeing AH-64E Apache helicopters. The agreement secures domestic sustainment capabilities for the Polish Armed Forces’ rapidly expanding rotorcraft fleet.

Expanding Sovereign Sustainment Capabilities

The newly finalized agreement designates Military Aviation Works No. 1 (WZL-1), a subsidiary of the Polish Armaments Group (PGZ), as an official maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) provider for the GE Aerospace engine families. This localized capability will directly support the propulsion systems for several critical platforms operated by the Polish military.

In addition to the incoming Boeing AH-64E Apache fleet, the T700 and CT7 engines power Poland’s Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawk, Leonardo AW149, and Leonardo AW101 helicopters. Establishing a domestic maintenance pipeline is designed to ensure long-term operational readiness without relying on cross-border logistics for routine engine overhauls.

“This agreement represents a significant milestone in the development of Poland’s sovereign MRO capabilities for T700 and CT7 engines,” said Jacek A. Goszczyński, CEO of WZL-1. “The competencies gained through this partnership will enable us to support the long-term readiness of the AH-64E Apache fleet and other critical platforms operated by the Polish Armed Forces.”

Shawn Warren, Vice President of Defense & Systems at GE Aerospace, noted that WZL-1 already holds a strong reputation for engine maintenance in Poland. He stated that the licensed MRO designation will ensure the engines are supported to the manufacturer’s high standards.

A Growing Hub for US Military Propulsion

The T700 and CT7 engine family currently powers 15 different types of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft globally. According to GE Aerospace, the company has delivered more than 25,000 of these engines to over 130 customers in more than 50 countries, accumulating over 130 million flight hours. In Europe alone, more than 1,300 engines are delivered or on order across 20 military and commercial operators.

The engine maintenance agreement builds upon GE Aerospace’s existing footprint in Poland, where the company employs more than 2,300 people across five locations. It also aligns with broader efforts by the Polish Armaments Group to consolidate the sustainment of American-made military hardware within the country.

In parallel to the helicopter engine initiative, WZL-1 is developing a maintenance hub for Honeywell AGT1500 gas turbine engines. These power the M1A1 and M1A2 Abrams tanks recently acquired by the Polish land forces.

Adam Leszkiewicz, President of the Management Board of PGZ, highlighted the strategic importance of the Dęblin facility. He stated that the combination of T700, CT7, and AGT1500 expertise is transforming the site into the leading center in the region for the maintenance of American military propulsion systems.

AirPro News analysis

The finalization of the GE Aerospace and WZL-1 agreement illustrates the structural shift in European defense procurement following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. As Poland executes unprecedented acquisitions of US military hardware, the Ministry of National Defense is strictly enforcing offset agreements to build domestic industrial capacity. By anchoring the MRO for both the Apache’s T700 engines and the Abrams’ AGT1500 engines at a single sovereign facility, Poland is mitigating supply chain vulnerabilities. We view this localization strategy as a blueprint for other NATO members scaling their fleets, as it ensures high-tempo operational readiness while insulating critical maintenance pipelines from international logistical bottlenecks.

Sources: GE Aerospace