You've probably heard the rumors that the F-35 Lightning II is either the greatest engineering feat in history or a colossal money pit. Honestly, it depends on who you ask at the Pentagon. But if you’re looking for the hard count—the actual number of these stealth beasts sitting on American runways right now—the answer is a moving target.
As of January 2026, the United States military operates roughly 750 to 800 F-35 aircraft across the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps.
That’s a huge jump from just a few years ago. Why the range? Because between jets in maintenance, those being delivered from the Lockheed Martin factory in Fort Worth, and the occasional airframe being retired for testing, the "on-the-ramp" count changes every single week.
The Breakdown: Who Owns What?
America doesn't just have one "F-35." It has three distinct versions, and they aren't distributed equally.
The U.S. Air Force is the big player here. They recently hit a massive milestone in mid-2025 by taking delivery of their 500th F-35A. This is the "conventional" version—the one that needs a standard runway. It’s the backbone of their future strategy. If you see an F-35 at an airshow, it’s almost certainly this one.
Then you have the Marine Corps. They fly the F-35B, the one that can hover and land vertically like a sci-fi movie. They currently have about 130 to 140 of these. They also pull double duty by flying the F-35C (the carrier version) alongside the Navy.
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The U.S. Navy has been the slowest to adopt, mostly because landing on a carrier is brutal on an airframe. They’re sitting at roughly 110 to 120 F-35C models. These have larger wings and beefier landing gear to handle those "controlled crashes" onto a flight deck.
Why 2025 Was a Wild Year for Deliveries
It's been a rollercoaster. For a while, the government actually stopped taking new jets.
Lockheed Martin had a massive backlog because of a software hiccup known as TR-3 (Technology Refresh 3). Basically, the hardware was ready, but the "brain" of the plane wasn't talking to the sensors correctly. This led to over 100 jets just sitting in Texas, waiting for a software update.
In a massive push throughout 2025, Lockheed cleared that backlog. They delivered a record-breaking 191 aircraft in a single year. That's why the U.S. inventory suddenly looks so much beefier than it did in 2024.
The Current Inventory "Vibe Check"
- Total U.S. Fleet: ~750+ active aircraft.
- Air Force (F-35A): 500+ and counting.
- Marine Corps (F-35B/C): ~150 combined.
- Navy (F-35C): ~120.
The 2026 Procurement Plot Twist
Here is where it gets weird. Even though Lockheed Martin is building these things faster than ever, the Pentagon actually slashed its 2026 order.
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Originally, they wanted 74 jets for this fiscal year. They cut that down to just 47.
Why? It’s not because the plane is bad. It’s because of money and "Block 4." Block 4 is the massive upgrade suite that makes the F-35 truly terrifying to adversaries, but it’s delayed. The Pentagon decided they’d rather spend money on fixing the jets they already have and funding the secretive Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program—which some are calling the F-47—rather than buying more "older" F-35s that will just need expensive retrofits later.
Is the Goal Still 2,500 Jets?
The "Program of Record" still says the U.S. wants 2,456 F-35s by the mid-2040s.
Will they actually get there? Probably not. With the rise of "loyal wingman" drones and sixth-generation fighters on the horizon, most analysts think the final number will land closer to 1,800 or 2,000.
But for now, the F-35 is the only game in town. It has surpassed 1 million flight hours globally. It’s been used in combat by the U.S., Israel, and the UK. While the headlines often focus on the price tag—which is about $82.5 million for an F-35A, not including the engine—the reality is that America has more stealth fighters than the rest of the world combined.
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What This Means for You
If you’re tracking the "how many" part of the equation, keep an eye on the Air National Guard. A lot of the new deliveries in 2026 are heading to Guard units in places like Florida and Alabama, replacing aging F-15s and F-16s.
The numbers are growing, but the focus has shifted from "quantity" to "readiness." Having 800 jets doesn't mean much if only half are ready to fly on any given day. The mission for 2026 isn't just about building more; it's about making sure the ones we have actually work.
Real-World Next Steps
To get the most accurate, up-to-the-minute count, you should monitor the Monthly F-35 Fast Facts released by Lockheed Martin and the USAF Almanac published by Air & Space Forces Magazine. These sources provide the official "Possessed Inventory" numbers that account for aircraft lost to attrition or retired for ground instruction.
Check the FY2026 Defense Appropriations Bill updates. This will tell you if Congress decided to override the Pentagon and buy more jets than requested, which happens more often than you’d think.
Follow the JPO (Joint Program Office) press releases regarding Block 4 software stability. The moment that software is "golden," expect the U.S. inventory numbers to skyrocket again as production hits its maximum capacity of 156 jets per year.