SINGAPORE — Singapore is slated join the F-35 operator club once the first of its Lockheed Martin F-35B fighters enter service later this year, becoming the fourth Asia-Pacific nation to fly the fifth-generation fighter.
Steve Sheehy, Lockheed Martin’s Vice President of Aeronautics International Business Development, predicted in a briefing at Singapore Airshow 2026 that more than 300 F-35s will be present in the region by 2030. This figure includes American F-35s based in Japan and Alaska.
Australia has 72 F-35A fighters, the last of which arrived in December 2024. In fact, Australia is currently the largest F-35 operator outside the United States.
However, that moniker will eventually transfer to Japan once the Japan Air Self-Defense Force gains its full complement of 105 F-35A and 42 F-35B jets. Japan received its first four F-35Bs last year.
Elsewhere in the region, South Korea took delivery of 40 F-35As and has another 20 on order.
Singapore is set to receive four F-35Bs before year’s end, based on a 2019 order. They will initially operate from Ebbing Air National Guard Base, before F-35s are introduced at Tengah Air Base in Singapore in around 2029, according to Lockheed Martin.
The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) has a further eight F-35Bs on order, these due for handover in 2028. Then, in February 2024, eight F-35As were added to Singapore’s order book and these should be delivered by 2030. This will give the RSAF a total of 20 F-35s in two variants.
Major Gen. Kelvin Fan, Singapore’s Chief of Air Force, commented: “The F-35As, with greater endurance and higher payload capacity, will provide sustained reach and persistence, while the F-35Bs with short take-off and vertical-landing capability will offer greater operational agility.”
Along with 40 F-15SG fighters and around 60 F-16C/Ds brought up to F-16V configuration, the RSAF eclipses every other Southeast Asian nation in terms of air combat power.
Of four F-35 heavy maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities around the world, two are in Asia-Pacific – in Australia and Japan. The others are in Italy and the United States.
Sheehy said his company delivered a record 191 F-35s last year. However, that number was swollen by delays in rolling out Technology Refresh 3 updates. He said the TR-3 backlog has been cleared, and he expected 156 F-35s to be delivered this year.
Further F-35 customers in Asia-Pacific may be difficult to find, however. Both Taiwan and Thailand have been rebuffed in recent years, although U.S. President Donald Trump invited Indian interest last year.
Gordon Arthur is an Asia correspondent for Defense News. After a 20-year stint working in Hong Kong, he now resides in New Zealand. He has attended military exercises and defense exhibitions in about 20 countries around the Asia-Pacific region.
