On Saturday, 6 December 2025, the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces announced on social media the first flight of the eighth Lockheed Martin F-35A Husarz multirole aircraft. The aircraft took off from NAS Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, adjacent to the Fort Worth FACO plant in Texas, owned by Lockheed Martin Aeronautics (a division of Lockheed Martin).
Photo: the General Staff of the Polish Armed Force
“Barely a month ago we reported that our F-35s numbered 3506 (AZ-06) and 3507 (AZ-07) had rolled off the production line, and after manufacturer testing were ferried to the U.S. National Guard base in Ebbing, Arkansas, where they will begin training the next generation of Polish F-35 pilots.
Meanwhile, another Husarz – 3508 (AZ-08) – has just rolled off the Lockheed Martin line and is undergoing tests at NAS Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth in Texas.
Each day brings us closer to their arrival in Poland!” – reads the short post on the social media platform X.
According to earlier statements, the AZ-08/3508 aircraft is scheduled to arrive at Ebbing in February 2026.
As a reminder, on 29 October this year the General Staff confirmed the first flights of the sixth and seventh aircraft, AZ-06/3506 and AZ-07/3507 (after aviation spotters documented the flights of the fifth AZ-05/3505 and the aforementioned sixth aircraft on 20 and 21 October). These are part of the total of 32 F-35A Block 4 aircraft ordered on 31 January 2020 by the Ministry of National Defence for 4.6 billion USD (17.9 billion PLN).
They joined four earlier aircraft that had already flown. The first to fly was AZ-02/3502 on 2 December 2024, followed by AZ-01/3501 on 3 December – the first aircraft presented to Poland during the roll-out ceremony on 27 August 2024. On 17 December 2024, the first flight of the third aircraft, AZ-03/3503, was reported, and on 4 February this year the fourth, AZ-04/3504, was confirmed.
Meanwhile, on 25 September this year, during a meeting of the Standing Subcommittee on the Polish Defence Industry and Technical Modernization of the Polish Armed Forces within the Sejm’s National Defence Committee, it was stated that in 2026 the manufacturer would deliver another three aircraft (later updated to two), followed by 16 aircraft in 2027, four in 2028, and two more in 2028.
As for delivery to Poland, the first two aircraft will arrive at the 32nd Tactical Air Base in May 2026, with the next two following in July 2026 – forming the first squadron. The second squadron will be established at the 21st Tactical Air Base in Świdwin (14 aircraft from AZ-09 to AZ-23 will be delivered directly to Poland).
Half of Poland’s aircraft are being produced at the Fort Worth FACO in Texas, and the other half at the FACO in Cameri, Italy. According to the schedule, the first eight aircraft (AZ-01 to AZ-08) will be stationed at the Ebbing Air National Guard base to support the training program until 2027, after which they will be transferred to Poland.
Ledwie miesiąc temu informowaliśmy, że nasze #F35 o numerach 3506 (AZ-06) i 3507 (AZ-07) zjechały z taśm produkcyjnych, a już po testach producenta zostały przebazowane do bazy Gwardii Narodowej USA – Ebbing w Arkansas, gdzie rozpoczną szkolenie kolejnego pokolenia polskich… pic.twitter.com/GfDLjbd0bV
— Sztab Generalny WP (@SztabGenWP) December 6, 2025
A big day for Poland’s F-35 program here in Fort Worth. 🇵🇱✈️
This morning, the 8th Husarz F-35A took to the skies for its maiden flight — and at the controls was none other than Lockheed test pilot Monessa “Siren” Balzhiser.
And the huge moments didn’t stop there.
3506 (AZ-6)… pic.twitter.com/6nSItUDl3p
— Eric Kilpatrick (@KpAviationPhoto) December 5, 2025
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