US Air Force targets larger F-35 fleet and future F-47 force by 2035

The US Air Force has set out a revised vision for its fighter fleet that would see combat-ready aircraft numbers grow to 1,509 by 2035.

The plan would be to grow its F-35 and later its F-47 fleets while decreasing its F-16 fleets.

The proposals were first reported by Air & Space Forces magazine following a Pentagon media roundtable with Lt Gen David Tabor, the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for plans and programmes.

While the full submission has not been made public, Tabor said the Air Force is planning for F-35As to comprise around 40% of its combat-coded fighter fleet by 2035.

Upgraded F-22 Raptors and future F-47 air superiority fighters would account for a further 20%, with the remaining 40% split roughly evenly between F-15 variants and F-16 Fighting Falcons.

This excludes the 500 Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCAs) the Air Force plans to have in its inventory by 2032.

The Air Force’s current and planned fighter jet fleet

Excluding the iconic A-10 Warthog ground attack aircraft, the Air Force’s fighter jet fleet is currently made up of around 45% F-16s, 30% F-35s, 15% F-15s, and 10% F-22s.

The Air Force has over 500 F-35As in inventory, with a planned eventual fleet of 1,763. It has around 185 F-22s in service, of which 145 are combat-coded and are set to be upgraded.

The Air Force has said it plans to purchase at least 185 F-47s and that these will eventually replace the Raptors, although there will be a period of time when they overlap and complement each other.

At the same time, the Air Force is increasing its planned acquisition of F-15EXs to 267, allowing it to recapitalize its F-15E fleet. The much lighter F-16 remains the most common fighter jet in USAF inventory.

Overcoming the Air Force’s fighter shortfall and securing sufficient funding

By 2035, the Air Force is forecasting it will need 1,509 combat-coded aircraft (down from 1,558 in last year’s report). Achieving that number will require growing the force, as it is estimated to have around 1,271 in inventory in 2026.

Reaching this goal will hinge on receiving sufficient funds and the United States’ defence industrial base. There are questions about how fast Lockheed Martin and Boeing will be able to produce the fighters.

The service has previously said it needs to purchase 72 new fighters every year, although the current Fiscal 2027 budgets appear to only have funds for 62 (38 F-35As and 24 F-15EXs).

More questions are about the future of the reconciliation bill the military is counting on to top up the base budget. It also includes funding for 14 of the Air Force’s 38 planned F-35A purchases.

Regarding whether the industrial base can meet Air Force demand, Tabor said: “They’ve assured us that they can, and we believe them, but we also actually need to see it manifest.”

The Air Force plans to grow the fleet by acquiring new F-35s, F-15EXs, and F-47s. There is also now some discussion about the Air Force purchasing an updated version of the F-16 to recapitalize the fleet. A proposal by Lockheed Martin features additional tanks to help address the Fighting Falcon’s range issues.