Before JF-509 and JF-511 can be used for training, they must pass airworthiness and acceptance inspections carried out by Air Force and Defence Forces Logistics Command personnel. Each aircraft needs its own airworthiness certificate.
The new arrivals follow JF-510 and JF-512, Finland’s first F-35s, which landed on Sept. 18. At a ceremony in Rovaniemi on Oct. 1, a Finnish pilot flew an F-35 in Finland for the first time.
The Finnish Defence Forces’ F-35A fighter jets JF-509 and JF-511 arrived at the Lapland Air Wing in Rovaniemi on 23 October at 5:56 pm. This marks the 2nd delivery of new fighter jets to Finland. A total of four 🇫🇮 F-35s have now arrived in Finland.
➡️ https://t.co/JkvImOJkAH https://t.co/A0dt0C7Vc2
— Ilmavoimat (@FinnishAirForce) October 23, 2026
Maintenance training is set to start in Rovaniemi later this year. Finnish personnel who have completed initial training in the United States will work as instructors alongside U.S., Norwegian and Danish instructors and specialists.
As of the Finnish Air Force’s Oct. 1 update, the first eight aircraft built for Finland were being used for training in the United States. The first groups of Finnish personnel have already finished their U.S. courses, but initial training there will continue until early 2028.
Finland expects to reach initial operational capability in early 2028, by which point Lapland Air Wing will fly only F-35s. Karelia Air Wing is due to get its first jets the same year.
Deliveries will run until the end of 2030, when the fleet is scheduled to reach full operational capability. Until then, Finland will operate its F/A-18 Hornets and F-35s side by side.
JF-509 left Lockheed Martin’s factory in Fort Worth, Texas, on Oct. 20 and stopped at Lajes Air Base in the Azores. There it was joined by JF-511, which had been held in the Azores since September with a minor avionics fault.
The @FinnishAirForce’s new F-35s on home soil, opening a new chapter for Finnish airpower. ✈️🇫🇮 https://t.co/VS7wi2KmSq
— Lockheed Martin Europe (@LMEuropeNews) October 23, 2026
Ferry flights are planned and carried out by the United States under the Foreign Military Sales process. Finland takes ownership of each aircraft at factory acceptance but only assumes control once it arrives in the country.
Finland is also getting ready to share aircraft, personnel and weapons with other European F-35 operators. In 2025, it signed the “Capacity on Call” memorandum with Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium, and U.S. Air Forces in Europe takes part under a separate arrangement.
On Sept. 17, a Finnish pilot flew a Norwegian F-35 at Ørland Air Base, the first time a Finn had flown the type in Europe. The Air Force expects this cooperation to become routine and to strengthen logistics and security of supply as the fleet enters service.
