Key Points – The US Navy’s F/A-XX sixth-generation fighter program is on hold, according to Navy Secretary John Phelan, who cited systemic problems with contractor performance and a need to re-evaluate the “air wing of the future.”
-Speaking before the House Armed Services Committee on June 11th, Phelan expressed low confidence in current programs.
-In contrast, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. James Kilby stated in the same hearing that the fighter is necessary to counter the threat from China.
-Meanwhile, Boeing’s defense CEO, Steve Parker, asserted that his company can build both the Air Force’s F-47 and the Navy’s F/A-XX simultaneously.
Navy’s 6th-Gen F/A-XX Fighter is ‘On Hold,’ Says Service Secretary
At a time when the Pentagon is looking to cut costs, the Secretary of the Navy told Congress earlier this month that the F/A-XX fighter program is on hold.
“I do not have a lot of confidence. All of our programs are in trouble. We have a number of companies that are not performing. We’ve got to get those done,” Navy Secretary John Phelan said in testimony before the House Armed Services Committee on June 11, Aviation Week reported.
Boeing and Northrop Grumman were reported as the finalists for the on-hold project, described as “a carrier-based, sixth-generation fighter.”
Boeing, earlier this year, won the Air Force contract to build the F-47 sixth-generation fighter jet, beating out Lockheed Martin.
Phelan’s testimony came after he recently visited the Navy’s shipbuilding yards, where he found what Aviation Week described as “systemic problems with government management and contractor performance.”
This has led the Navy to take another look at what the secretary described as “the air wing of the future.”
“We’re looking at the full composition of the air wing of the future and so we have to focus on the capabilities and the technologies that are going to win. And that includes manned and unmanned platforms that we have to look at,” the secretary said.
In the same hearing, however, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. James Kilby said that the Navy needs a new fighter.
“In my opinion, I believe the sixth-[generation] fighter is necessary for the Navy just as it is for the Air Force. The thing that drives that necessity is the threat,” Kilby said in the hearing, per Aviation Week. “It’s important to continue onwards here because China isn’t slowing down, and we aren’t slowing down either.”
Boeing: We Can Do F-47 and F/A-XX
Meanwhile, the head of Boeing’s defense operation said this week that the company is up for building two different sixth-generation jets.
“Absolutely, we can do it, and so can the industrial base, and so can the engine manufacturers. So I don’t see that as being an issue,” Boeing defense and space CEO Steve Parker told the press this week at the Paris Air Show, as reported by Defense One.
“From day one, a capital investment was for both programs. We’ve done the same with our technology. We’ve done the same with our staffing. I can’t get too many staffing numbers, but we have a very large number of folks working on both programs,” Parker added.
And while Lockheed, per Defense One, has proposed a “super-charged” version of the F-35, Boeing’s Parker isn’t worried about that plan, making some sharp comments.
“I get it when other companies have shareholders to answer to when they’ve been knocked out of both sixth-gen fighter programs,” Parker said in France, per Defense One.
“But at the end of the day, I think the U.S. Air Force’s selection of the F-47…tells you all you need to. Only a sixth-generation aircraft, specifically developed and designed to meet the requirements of today and of the future—that’s the only sensible solution.”
What Hegseth Thinks
Per Air & Space Forces magazine, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has requested $3.5 billion for the F-47 program, in his 2026 budget request.
“President Trump has charged us with making the big difficult decisions after a lot of deferred maintenance and deferred decisions to ignore parochial priorities, in large part, and focus on what the department needs and where it needs it and when it needs it,” Hegseth said when he testifies before the House Appropriations Committee on June 10, the day before the Navy officials testified.
“That means some tough calls.”
House appropriators, however, have proposed a lower number, of $3.2 billion, for the program.
About the Author:
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. For over a decade, Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, technology, and the economy. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
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