Boeing beats Northrop to build U.S. Navy’s sixth-gen jet

The U.S. Navy has picked Boeing to build F/A-XX, its first sixth-generation carrier-based strike fighter, choosing the company over Northrop Grumman and awarding a development contract valued at more than $20 billion.

The U.S. Department of War announced the award on Sept. 29. The contract covers the full-scale development phase and buys multiple test aircraft for ground, airworthiness, systems and weapons integration testing, the Pentagon said.

The new jet is meant to augment and eventually replace the U.S. Navy’s F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers beginning in the 2030s, flying from carriers alongside the F-35C. The service released a single artist’s rendering of Boeing’s design on a carrier deck, but Boeing said the aircraft’s technical and programmatic details remain classified under U.S. national security and export laws.

“It’s an honor to be selected to produce the Navy’s first sixth-generation platform. Backed by decades of work, bolstered by game-changing innovations and solidified by the investments we’ve made in new facilities uniquely suited to build multiple products with next generation capabilities, our dedicated and talented team is ready to execute this critical program,” said Steve Parker, president and chief executive officer of Boeing Defense, Space & Security.

The win gives Boeing both of the U.S. military’s next-generation crewed fighter programs. The U.S. Air Force selected Boeing for the F-47 on March 21, 2025, over Lockheed Martin, and Lockheed was reportedly eliminated from the Navy contest that same month, leaving Boeing and Northrop Grumman as the final two bidders.

“Delivering two advanced fighters in parallel was always our plan, and we invested accordingly. We are ready and able to build multiple concurrent future combat aircraft franchise programs,” said Parker.

Northrop Grumman, which can still challenge the outcome, acknowledged the decision and said it was waiting for more information about the selection, Aviation Week reported. The company had hoped the program would return it to the role of fighter prime contractor, a position it has not held in decades.

Whether one company can carry both fighters at once has been debated since the F-47 decision, with Northrop already building the B-21 bomber for the U.S. Air Force.

“The industrial base concerns among the Pentagon brass have not faded when it comes to both NGAD programs at once. I wonder how much the Boeing win was impacted by this. This will likely be a NAVAIR optimized F-47,” Tyler Rogoway, editor-in-chief of The War Zone, wrote on X.

Boeing points to its St. Louis operation as the answer. The company said construction continues there on a secure manufacturing facility that it describes as the largest in the United States, and which will be part of its all-digital aerospace design and manufacturing system.

“Investment in facilities is just one part of the story; we’re also investing in technology and people so that we can deliver for our customers,” Parker added.

St. Louis is also where Boeing builds the jets F/A-XX will replace. On the same day as the fighter award, the U.S. Navy gave Boeing a separate contract worth about $16.7 million to plan and prepare the shutdown of the Super Hornet and Growler production lines.

“I worked with the Trump Admin to bring production of the Navy’s next fighter to MO,” wrote U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt, a Missouri Republican, on X.

The award ends a long stretch of silence and uncertainty around the program. F/A-XX stalled for months after the F-47 decision while funding fluctuated and the U.S. Navy weighed its options, and the Pentagon approved moving ahead with a choice between Boeing and Northrop Grumman in October 2025 without naming a winner. Congress then set aside $897 million for F/A-XX in the fiscal 2026 defense appropriations act and required the Pentagon to award a development contract.

The announcement came shortly before the end of the fiscal year, when the funding Congress added for the program was due to expire, Aviation Week also reported.

Unlike the F-47, which received its designation on the day of its award, the Navy fighter is still known only as F/A-XX.