Japan, which has taken leaps forward in the defence field and aims to significantly increase its military capability, has decided to continue licensed production.

Announcing that the production line of F-35 Lightning IIs will close after first phase Japanese aircraft manufacturing at the end of 2018, Japan has stepped back from its decision. Thus, the final assembly and control facility (FACO) located in Nagoya, Tokyo, decided to continue production of the F-35. An official from Japan stated that the production of F-35 Lightning IIs in the country is a more cost-effective solution than importing directly from the USA. For this reason, Japan decided to continue production.

In the past few weeks, the U.S. approved the possible sale of 105 F-35 Lightning IIs to Japan under FMS (Foreign Military Sales). Within the scope of the process, whose total cost was announced as 23 billion USD, 42 of the platforms to be acquired by the country will be F-35B Lightning II, which is a STOVL configuration variant. Following the completion of deliveries, Japan is expected to be the largest F-35 Lightning II user after the USA with 147 aircraft.