F-35

First Polish F-35s Arrive at Łask Airbase

Published on: May 25, 2026 at 3:05 PM
Stefano D'Urso Stefano D'Urso
Polish F-35s Łask
One of the first three Polish F-35s lands at Łask Airbase. (Image credit: Polish MoD)

The first three F-35s arrived in Poland at Łask Airbase after a delivery flight from Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth production plant.

The Polish Air Force has taken delivery of its first three F-35A Lightning II fighters on national soil. The aircraft landed at Łask Airbase on May 22, 2026, at the end of the delivery flight which took them from Lockheed Martin’s production plant in Fort Worth, Texas, to Poland, after a stop in the Azores at Lajes Airbase.

Upon arrival, the F-35s were escorted by two F-16 Fighting Falcons, Poland’s current main frontline fighter aircraft. It should be noted that these are not the Polish Air Force’s first F-35s, as eight of them were already delivered to Ebbing Air National Guard Base, Arkansas, for training.

Poland’s first F-35, designated Husarz in national service, conducted its maiden flight on Dec. 2, 2024. Shortly thereafter the aircraft was moved to Ebbing where, as part of the training program for foreign military sales (FMS) customers of the F-35, Poland planned to base its first eight aircraft, before starting deliveries in country.

The aircraft which landed at Łask Airbase showed the serials 3509, 3510 and 3511, while the aircraft from 3501 to 3508 are at Ebbing. Notably, 3511 also featured a tail art representing a panther, which reflects the unofficial nickname “Panther” given to the F-35.

“This is a great day for Poland, for the Polish Armed Forces, for the Air Force,” said Deputy Prime Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz. “The first three F-35s have landed in Poland, in the 32nd Air Base in Łask, which today becomes a home for our F-35 aircraft.”

Initially, Łask was planned to host the entire F-35 fleet, according to official statements in 2021. Later, it was decided that the fleet would be split between Łask and Świdwin, which formerly hosted the Su-22 Fitter fleet.

Łask is also one of the two bases hosting the Polish F-16C/D Block 52 fleet. The jets will undergo a Mid Life Upgrade (MLU) program for the upgrade to the F-16V Block 72 standard which, among all things, will allow an improved integration with the F-35.

Polish F-35A program

On Sept. 11, 2019, the U.S. State Department approved the sale of 32 F-35 fifth-generation jets to Poland at a cost of USD 6.5 billion, according to a Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announcement. Poland opted for the F-35A CTOL (Conventional Take-Off and Landing) variant to replace its aging Soviet-era MiG-29 and Su-22 fleets.

In January 2020, a contract was signed for the procurement of 32 F-35s, with first delivery initially expected in 2024. Along with the aircraft, Poland has also acquired various weapon systems for the F-35, including AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles and “several hundreds” AGM-158B JASSM-ER cruise missiles.

Further weapons procurements were also approved, such as AIM-9X-2 Sidewinder missiles and AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile-Extended Range (AARGM-ER) missiles. The deals were signed in 2024 and 2025, respectively, followed by a deal for the AIM-120D-3 AMRAAM in 2025.

In 2021, it was decided that the Polish F-35 fleet of 32 aircraft would be entirely stationed at Łask AB in central Poland. Later, Świdwin was also selected, with the F-35s divided among the two bases.

On Aug. 28, 2024, the first Polish Air Force F-35A, designated AZ-01, was officially unveiled during a roll-out ceremony at Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth facilities, Texas, in the presence of Polish officials. The first aircraft to fly, however was AZ-02, which  successfully completed its first test flight on Dec. 2, 2024.

The first aircraft were delivered to Ebbing Air National Guard Base, Arkansas, where Polish pilot training is taking place, as the base is used for the training of foreign military sales (FMS) customers. The first F-35s were planned to arrive in Poland in 2026, with the remainder of the fleet to be delivered by 2030.

As expected, Polish Air Force F-35s don’t sport the traditional white-and-red checkerboard symbol, replaced by a low-visibility version of the emblem. This marks a significant change, as all Polish Air Force aircraft have historically worn the full-color white-and-red checkerboard, including Su-22s and MiG-29s, even after being repainted in new all-grey camouflage schemes.

The Polish F-35’s name

Following the acquisition of the F-35 by the Polish Armed Forces, the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces announced a competition for the name of the new fighter jets. Individuals submitted their proposed name for the F-35 fighter under a post on the official profile of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces on social media that remained online between April 12 and April 18, 2024.

At the end of the poll, Husarz (Polish for Winged Hussar) was selected as the official nickname for the Polish F-35. Noteworthy, until now, the nicknames of individual aircraft in Polish service were described by birds of prey (like “Sokol”, Polish for “Falcon”, or Jastrzębie, Polish for Hawk).

The ‘Hussar’ was a member of a class of light cavalry that was first formed in the Kingdom of Poland at the beginning of the 16th Century.

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By Stefano D'Urso
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Stefano D'Urso is the Deputy Editor at The Aviationist, based in Lecce, Italy. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering and is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Aerospace Engineering. His areas of expertise include emerging aerospace and defense technologies, electronic warfare, unmanned and autonomous systems, loitering munitions, and the application of OSINT techniques to the analysis of military operations and contemporary conflicts.
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