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F-35 Lightning II News​

Three more Belgian F-35As arrive at Florennes, clearing way for F-16 transfers to Ukraine​

September 27, 2026 (by Lieven Dewitte) - Three additional Belgian F-35A fighter jets have arrived at Florennes AB, bringing the number of F-35As physically present in Belgium to seven and accelerating the phased withdrawal of the country’s F-16 fleet ahead of planned transfers to Ukraine.

One of the three F-35A fighter jets recently delivered to Belgium [Photo by Belgian Air Force]

The three aircraft (s/n FL013, FL015 and FL016) landed at Florennes on the afternoon of Friday, 25 September 2026, shortly after 14:30h local time, following a transatlantic ferry flight from the United States with a refuelling stop in the Azores. The flight was supported by two U.S. Air Force KC-135 tankers.

The jets join the four F-35As that arrived at Florennes in October 2025, where Belgium’s 1st Squadron is introducing the type into service. Another Belgian F-35A (#FL014) is expected to arrive before the end of 2026, which would bring the home-based fleet at Florennes to eight aircraft.

Eight more (FL001 to FL008) are based at Luke AFB, Az. for the conversion of the Belgian Air Force pilots. Belgium ordered in total 34 F-35A's in 2018 to replace its fleet of F-16s, with full delivery and full combat readiness scheduled to be completed by 2030. The Belgian F-35As are currently expected to be ready for rapid-response operations as early as 2027.

F-16 phase-out and Ukraine transfers
The arrival of new F-35As in the Belgian Air Force will determine the pace at which Belgium transfers F-16s to Ukraine. As F-35s are delivered, Belgium will gradually decommission its F-16 fighter jets and transfer them to Ukraine.

By the end of 2026, Belgium plans to transfer seven F-16s to Ukraine: three for combat use and four as a source of spare parts. In total, Belgium plans to transfer all 53 of its F-16s to Ukraine by the end of 2029.

Under the timeline given by Belgium earlier this year, the delivery of the first seven F-16s should take place this year. These are likely to include three combat-capable aircraft and four non-operational Falcons for spare parts. Another five are expected to head to Ukraine in 2027. This will rise to 14 in 2028 and the remaining 27 in 2029.

Strategic context
Belgium’s pledge to transfer all 53 remaining F-16AM/BM fighters to Ukraine is a mechanical consequence of Lockheed Martin’s delivery schedule for 34 F-35A aircraft. Consequently, Kyiv is now slated to receive an initial tranche of combat-ready and spare-parts F-16s by late 2026, followed by a sustained throughput that will make Belgium the single largest European donor of the airframe, although the ultimate operational impact remains tethered to the continued, uninterrupted delivery of the remaining contracted F-35s from Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth assembly lines.

The initial tranche of seven F-16s to Ukraine by end-2026—three combat-ready, four designated for spare parts—represents the leading edge of a release protocol constrained not by political will but by NATO Article 5 obligations.
www.f-16.net