Lockheed Martin planned to deliver 45 F-35 Lightning II fighter jets in 2015, and on Monday, the company announced that goal was met.
Lockheed delivered its 45th F-35 to the U.S. Department of Defense, meeting the F-35 production goal for 2015. The jet will be used for the U.S. Air Force.
45 jets are the most Lockheed has delivered in program history. In 2014, the company delivered 36 jets.
Of the 45 jets delivered, 44 came from Lockheed’s production facility in Fort Worth. The other jet came from Lockheed’s facility in Cameri, Italy.
The stateside recipients of the 45 aircraft are the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. Internationally, Royal Norwegian Air Force received two F-35s, while the Italian Air Force received one F-35.
The F-35 is meant to be a more technologically advanced plane equipped with stealth technology that would allow pilots to locate and strike targets at long distances without being noticed by the enemy. The F-35 also allows pilots to fly higher and faster, as well as collect intelligence.
Lockheed began delivering F-35s in 2011. Since then, the company has delivered 154 jets to six countries.
In 2001, the Pentagon announced that Lockheed had won the contract to build the F-35 for the Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. As of September, the projected total cost of the project is about $389 billion, which includes spending from 2001 until 2039.
Back in August, Lockheed spokesman Mike Rein said the company planned to deliver 3,170 F-35s to both foreign and U.S. military.