USA Trump announces F-35 successor - Boeing wins contract

SDA

21.3.2025 - 18:17

US President Donald Trump. Photo: Ben Curtis/AP/dpa
US President Donald Trump. Photo: Ben Curtis/AP/dpa
Keystone

US President Donald Trump launches the construction of a new type of fighter jet. "Nothing in the world even comes close," said the Republican in the White House. The US aircraft manufacturer Boeing has been awarded the contract for this sixth-generation fighter jet. A fleet is to be built in the coming years, Trump said.

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The F-22 and F-35 are currently the most modern operational fighter jets in the USA and belong to the fifth generation. The F-22 is no longer in production, but is still in service with the Air Force.

The new fighter jet is to be called the F-47. Trump is the 45th and 47th President of the USA. The F-47 fighter jet will be "the most advanced, most capable and most lethal aircraft ever", said Trump. A prototype of the aircraft has been "secretly in the air" for almost five years.

The development of the jet had been a big secret - for reasons of secrecy, not too much would be revealed about the F-47 even now, Trump said. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said: "This is a historic investment in the American military."

The award decision is a victory for the economically ailing Boeing Group. The F-35 jets are produced by rival defense contractor Lockheed Martin.