The Royal Australian Air Force received its seventy-second—and probably last—F-35A Lightning stealth fighter jet, completing its fifth-generation fighter jet fleet for the time being.

Australian F-35s

In December, the Australian military received its seventy-second F-35A stealth fighter jet, completing the roster of the third operational squadron.

“The delivery of the final F-35A Lightning II aircraft is a practical demonstration of the Air Force’s ability to deliver highly effective air power as part of an integrated and focused force, in line with the National Defence Strategy,” chief of air force, Air Marshal Stephen Chappell, said in a press statement.

With the delivery of the last F-35, the Royal Australian Air Force becomes the strongest in the southeastern Pacific and one of the most powerful in the entire Indo-Pacific area of operations.

“Australians should be proud that our Air Force is flying the most advanced multi-role fighter in the world,” he added.

Now, the Royal Australian Air Force flies three types of fighter jets: the F-35A Lightning II, the F/A-18F Super Hornet, and the EA-18G Growler.

The F-35 is a fifth-generation stealth aircraft and the most advanced fighter jet in the skies today. The “A” version Australia is operating is the conventional take-off iteration—the F-35 has two other versions, B and C, with different landing and take-off capabilities.

The F/A-18 Super Hornet is an agile and capable fourth-generation fighter jet. Australia has twenty-four of those aircraft.

The third type of aircraft in service, the EA-18G Growler, is a variation of the F/A-18 Hornet/Super Hornet that specializes in electronic warfare—tracking and destroying enemy air defenses. Australia has twelve EA-18G aircraft.

“The F-35A aircraft fleet, in conjunction with the EA-18G Growler and F/A-18F Super Hornets, are the cornerstone of Australia’s air defence and strike capability, as outlined in the 2024 National Defence Strategy,” the Australian Air Force states about its fleet.

How Many F-35s?

Initially, the Royal Australian Air Force had planned for the procurement of 100 F-35A Lightning II stealth fighter jets. Indeed, if you take a look at Lockheed Martin’s publicly released data on F-35 orders, it lists Australia with an order of 100 aircraft. However, earlier in 2024, the Australian military decided not to procure a fourth squadron of F-35A, thus limiting its order to seventy-two stealth aircraft. It is unclear whether Canberra will exercise its right to a fourth F-35 squadron down the line.

The reason for not procuring additional F-35 was dual: first, Canberra decided to upgrade its F/A-18F Super Hornet fleet to allow the fourth-generation aircraft to be competitive in a near-peer environment and fly well into the 2030s; and second, the F-35A proved to be a bigger success than Australian officials expected.

“We’ve decided to keep the Super Hornets in service for two reasons: one, they’re doing great work, and secondly, the Joint Strike Fighter is even more capable than we initially thought,” Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said in April.

“We can delay the replacement of the Super Hornet, which frees up funding to invest in more long-range missiles, for example,” the Australian defense official added.

Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations and a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ). He holds a BA from Johns Hopkins University and an MA from Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.

Image: moh_bagusov2 / Shutterstock.com