Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Israeli procurement
Fleet of Lockheed Martin F-35I Adir fighter aircraft used by the Israeli Air Force / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Israeli procurement is the result of an agreement for the government of Israel to procure the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II for the Israeli Air Force as the F-35I "Adir". The first nine F-35s became operational with the Israeli Air Force in December 2017.[1]
On 22 May 2018, Israeli Air Force commander, Major General Amikam Norkin, reported that Israel had become the first country in the world to use the F-35 in combat.[2]
In November 2020, an F-35I testbed aircraft was delivered. This was the only example of a testbed F-35 delivered to an air force outside of the United States.[3][4]
As of 13 November 2022, the Israeli Airforce has 36 F-35s in service, including the testbed stationed at the Flight Test Center at Tel Nof Airbase, and operates three squadrons at Nevatim Airbase – the 140th, 116th and 117th.[5]