On Saturday, September 13, 2025, the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces announced on social media that the first Polish pilot has completed the instructor course on the Lockheed Martin F-35A Husarz multirole aircraft.
Photo: General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces
“The first Polish pilot has completed the instructor course on the F-35 Lightning II fighter at Ebbing Air National Guard Base! This is another step in building Poland’s defense potential and strengthening cooperation with our American allies. Congratulations to the pilot and the entire training team!” – the short announcement read.
Earlier, on July 21 and May 10 of this year, the completion of the first stage of flight training by two groups of pilots was reported.
It should be recalled that the first flight of a Polish pilot at the controls of an F-35A Husarz took place on January 31 of this year. Another milestone was the first in-flight refueling, carried out on March 6, in cooperation with a KC-135R Stratotanker from the 126th Air Refueling Wing of the U.S. Air Force.
So far, Lockheed Martin has delivered at least 4 out of 32 F-35A Block 4 aircraft ordered on January 31, 2020, by Poland for USD 4.6 billion (PLN 17.9 billion). Half of them are produced at the FACO facility in Fort Worth, Texas, and the other half at FACO Cameri in Italy. According to the schedule, a total of eight aircraft will be stationed at Ebbing to support the training program until 2027.
In total, 24 pilots and 92 technical personnel will be trained. Polish pilots are undergoing training at Ebbing up to the instructor level (as today’s announcement confirms), which will allow future aviators to be trained in Poland, at the Integrated Training Center, where eight full mission simulators will be located.
The arrival of the first aircraft in Poland is scheduled for January 2026, as announced by the President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, after his meeting at the White House with U.S. President Donald Trump on September 3 of this year. The first squadron will then be assembled at the 32nd Tactical Air Base in Łask. The second squadron will be assembled in 2030 at the 21st Tactical Air Base in Świdwin.
🇵🇱 Pierwszy polski pilot ukończył kurs instruktorski na myśliwcu F-35 Lightning II w Ebbing Air National Guard Base❗️
To kolejny krok w budowaniu potencjału obronnego Polski i wzmacnianiu współpracy z naszymi amerykańskimi sojusznikami.
Gratulacje dla pilota i całego zespołu… pic.twitter.com/ASYarCuMpE
— Sztab Generalny WP (@SztabGenWP) September 13, 2025
🇵🇱✈️ Polscy piloci F-35 w bazie Ebbing, USA 🇺🇸
Jako jedni z pierwszych szkolą się w Ebbing Air National Guard Base, przygotowując się do wprowadzenia najnowocześniejszych myśliwców F-35 Lightning II do służby w Siłach Powietrznych RP.
To kolejny krok w budowaniu potencjału… pic.twitter.com/pQFh2c5NUN
— Sztab Generalny WP (@SztabGenWP) September 6, 2025