You’ve probably heard the rumors that the F-35 is finally getting "cheap." For a few years, that was actually true. We watched the price of the world’s most advanced stealth fighter drop lot by lot, eventually dipping below the cost of some older, non-stealthy jets.
But things changed.
If you look at the f 35 cost to build right now, in early 2026, the downward trend has officially hit a wall. Between massive software upgrades and the stubborn reality of global inflation, the "discount era" for the Lightning II is basically over.
The Current Price Tag (Lot 18 and Beyond)
Honestly, pinning down a single number is tricky because the Pentagon and Lockheed Martin like to talk about "flyaway cost." That’s just the jet and the engine. It doesn't include the spare parts, the pilot's $400,000 helmet, or the specialized tools needed to keep the thing from falling apart.
For the latest production runs (Lot 18), here is the rough breakdown of what it costs to actually roll one off the assembly line:
- F-35A (The "Standard" Version): You're looking at roughly $101.5 million per jet. This is a significant jump from the $82.5 million average we saw just a couple of years ago.
- F-35B (The Vertical Landing Version): This one is a mechanical nightmare—in a cool way—and it costs like it. It’s sitting around $110 million to $115 million.
- F-35C (The Navy Carrier Version): With its heavy-duty landing gear and folding wings, this variant usually lands right in the middle, roughly $105 million.
Why the sudden spike? It’s not just one thing. It's a "perfect storm" of supply chain mess and the ambitious TR-3 (Technology Refresh 3) hardware.
The $20 Million Engine Problem
One of the biggest drivers of the f 35 cost to build is the engine. Pratt & Whitney’s F135 engine used to cost somewhere in the $14 million range. As of the most recent Lot 18 contracts, that price has surged to about **$20.4 million**.
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Think about that. The engine alone now costs more than an entire A-10 Warthog did back in the day.
The military is currently pushing for an "Engine Core Upgrade" (ECU) because the current engines are literally running too hot. They were designed for a certain amount of electronics, but as we keep stuffing more sensors and computers into the jet, the engine has to work harder to provide cooling and power.
Why is it so expensive to manufacture?
It’s easy to look at the $100 million sticker price and get angry. But building a stealth fighter isn't like building a Ford F-150.
1. The Stealth Coatings
Stealth isn't just about the shape of the wings. It’s about the "skin." The F-35 is covered in a radar-absorbent material (RAM) that has to be applied with extreme precision. If there's a gap the size of a fingernail, a radar might pick it up. Maintaining those tolerances on a mass-production line is incredibly expensive.
2. Sensor Fusion
The F-35 is basically a flying supercomputer. It has sensors all over its "body" that allow the pilot to look "through" the floor of the plane. This isn't just a screen; it's a massive amount of data being processed in real-time. Every single one of those sensors is a high-end piece of tech that requires rare earth minerals and specialized labor.
3. The Three-Variant Trap
The biggest mistake in the program’s history—depending on who you ask—was trying to make one plane do three different jobs. The Air Force, Marines, and Navy all have different needs.
The Air Force wants a fast, agile jet (F-35A).
The Marines want a jet that can hover (F-35B).
The Navy wants a jet that can survive the brutal "controlled crash" of a carrier landing (F-35C).
Trying to share parts between these three very different machines actually made the f 35 cost to build higher because of the engineering compromises involved.
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The Trillion-Dollar Elephant in the Room
We’ve been talking about the cost to build the jet, but that’s actually the cheap part.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has been sounding the alarm for years. The total lifecycle cost—which includes fuel, repairs, and upgrades through the year 2088—is now projected to exceed $2 trillion.
$2 trillion. That’s a number so big it’s hard to wrap your head around.
Part of this is because the jets are harder to maintain than we thought. The stealth coating wears off. The software (currently the Block 4 update) is millions of lines of code that keep getting delayed. Every delay in software means the planes already built have to sit in a hangar or be retrofitted later, which adds billions to the total bill.
Is the F-35 actually "overpriced"?
It depends on what you compare it to.
If you look at the F-15EX, which is a heavily upgraded version of a 1970s design, those are currently costing about $90 million to $97 million per unit.
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When you compare a $95 million F-15 (which isn't stealthy) to a $101 million F-35 (which is), the F-35 actually looks like a decent deal. That’s the argument Lockheed Martin makes, anyway. They argue that because they are building thousands of these things, the "economies of scale" make them the best value on the market.
International partners like Switzerland and Poland seem to agree. Even with the recent price hikes, they are still lining up to buy them because, frankly, there isn't anything else on the market that can do what an F-35 does.
Actionable Insights for Taxpayers and Tech Watchers
If you're following the f 35 cost to build, here are the three things you should actually watch in 2026:
- Lot 19 Negotiations: The Pentagon is currently haggling over the next big batch of jets. If they can’t get the price back under $100 million for the A-model, expect a lot of "sticker shock" headlines in the coming months.
- The Engine Core Upgrade (ECU): Watch how much Pratt & Whitney charges for the upgraded engine modules. If this goes over budget, the unit cost of the jet will continue to climb.
- Availability Rates: The cost to build doesn't matter if the planes can't fly. Currently, many F-35s are "mission capable" only about 50-60% of the time. The real value is found in the "cost per flight hour," which the Air Force is desperately trying to get down to $25,000 (it's currently much higher).
The F-35 is a marvel of technology, but it’s also a cautionary tale about what happens when you try to build "the one jet to rule them all." It's expensive, it's complicated, and it's likely going to be the backbone of Western air power for the next fifty years—whether we can afford it or not.
Keep an eye on the "Block 4" software rollout. That's the real gatekeeper. Until that software is stable, every jet coming off the line is basically an unfinished product, and finishing it later is where the real money disappears.
Next Steps: To stay updated, track the GAO's annual F-35 reports usually released in the spring, as these provide the most transparent look at the "hidden" costs beyond the flyaway price. Additionally, follow the "Lot 18-19" definitization news from the Joint Program Office for the final, official unit prices.