Denmark Receives New Batch of F-35 Fighters

The Royal Danish Air Force has received four new multi-role F-35A fighter jets.

The Danish Ministry of Defense reported on this.

The new F-35 jets landed at the Fighter Wing Skrydstrup air base via the Azores after a flight from Lockheed Martin’s factories in Texas. With the arrival of the new aircraft, the total number of Danish F-35As based in Denmark has increased to 15.

“With the arrival of the four aircraft yesterday, we have taken another step toward enhancing the combat capability of the F-35 aircraft,” Major General Jan Dam, Commander of the Air Command, reported.

A year ago, there was uncertainty about the pace of delivery of Danish fighter jets due to issues with the Technology Refresh 3 (TR-3) upgrade. The Minister of Defense was forced to inform the coordinating group that these problems could affect the politically set milestones of the F-35 project.

However, the latest batch of aircraft arrived on schedule, raising hopes for the timely completion of the program.

In addition to the fifteen F-35 fighter jets now based in Denmark, six aircraft remain in the U.S. for training and pilot education.

Danish F-35A Contract

Denmark has purchased a total of 27 multi-role F-35 fighter jets to replace its fleet of F-16s.

The last American-made aircraft are expected to be delivered to the Danish Air Force in 2026. All of them will be based at the Fighter Wing Skrydstrup air base, where the necessary infrastructure has already been established. The previous batch of three aircraft was delivered in January 2025.

Denmark has been participating in the development program for the fifth-generation F-35 fighter jet since 1997. Following an assessment conducted between 2013 and 2016, on May 12, 2016, the country’s government recommended the purchase of at least 27 F-35A aircraft to replace the F-16. In 2017, the Danish parliament approved the budget for the program, planned to run until 2026.

The first flight test of TR-3 revealed software issues that were not identified during laboratory tests, according to a recent report from the Government Accountability Office.

As a result, starting from the end of the summer of 2024, all F-35 fighter jets with the TR-3 upgrade that came off the production line were not accepted into service until their combat capabilities were confirmed.