Canada gets its first two CF-35A stealth fighters

The Royal Canadian Air Force has taken delivery of its first two CF-35A stealth fighters, the Canadian version of the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II, at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona, the service announced.

The jets will stay at Luke, a major U.S. Air Force training base for F-35 pilots from the United States and partner nations, where the RCAF has set up its first CF-35A training squadron. Canada plans to base its first eight F-35s there during 2026 and 2027 to train Canadian pilots, before the first aircraft arrive at 4 Wing Cold Lake in Alberta in 2028, with initial operational capability planned for 2029.

“The future of air and space power is built on more than equipment alone. We are developing the skilled people, integrated capabilities, and modern tools we need to meet future challenges at home and abroad,” the Royal Canadian Air Force wrote.

The deliveries come one month after Canada’s first CF-35A made its maiden flight on Sept. 23, 2026, at Lockheed Martin’s plant in Fort Worth, Texas. That aircraft, production number AR-1, already wore full RCAF markings, including bilingual RCAF-ARC lettering on its air intakes and a roundel matching the one carried by the CF-18 Hornet it will replace. The CF-35A designation is the first two-digit designation for a Canadian military aircraft since the current naming format was introduced in the 1960s.

The F-35 will replace the RCAF’s CF-18s, which Canada has flown since the 1980s and plans to keep in service until the early 2030s while the new fleet builds up. Canada agreed in January 2023 to buy 88 F-35As for about $19 billion, part of a Future Fighter Capability Project valued at C$27.7 billion including training, equipment, sustainment and infrastructure.

How many of those jets Canada will ultimately buy is still undecided. Prime Minister Mark Carney ordered a review of the purchase in March 2025, and Ottawa has so far made a legal funding commitment for the first 16 aircraft, with long-lead payments for 14 more confirmed in February 2026. Defense Minister David McGuinty has said the review is ongoing without setting a timeline, and options under discussion include a mixed fleet that would add Saab Gripen E fighters, which Saab has offered to assemble in Canada.

Preparations for the F-35 have continued in the meantime. On Oct. 7, 2026, McGuinty announced nearly C$4 billion for fighter infrastructure at Cold Lake, the first Canadian base that will fly the jet, while 3 Wing Bagotville in Quebec is the planned second operating base.

With two CF-35As now in Canadian hands at Luke, the RCAF expects to receive the rest of its first eight training aircraft there through 2027.