SINGAPORE — Singapore is slated join the F-35 operator club once the first of its Lockheed Martin F-35B fighters enter service later this year, becoming the fourth Asia-Pacific nation to fly the fifth-generation fighter. Steve Sheehy, Lockheed Martin’s Vice President of Aeronautics International Business Development, predicted in a briefing at Singapore Airshow 2026 that more than 300 F-35s will be present in the region by 2030. This figure includes American F-35s based in Japan and Alaska.