The F-35B Lightning II fighter jet reached a new milestone during integration tests of the British SPEAR 3 missile.
The aircraft performed, for the first time, a flight carrying four units of the weapon in a test conducted by the integrated F-35 program team in the United States.
The tests took place at Patuxent River Air Base in Maryland and are part of preparations for future evaluations involving the full integration of mission systems and live missile launches. According to members of the program, the flight represents an important step in validating the weapon’s behavior aboard the British stealth fighter.
Developed by MBDA, the SPEAR 3 was designed to fit inside the F-35B’s internal weapons bays while maintaining the aircraft’s stealth characteristics. The missile has a range of more than 100 kilometers and can strike moving targets even in adverse weather conditions by using GPS, inertial navigation, and a data link.
Despite the progress, the program continues to face delays. Originally expected to enter service in 2025, the SPEAR 3 schedule has been postponed several times. The British Ministry of Defence is now working with the expectation of bringing the weapon into operational service only between the end of this decade and the early 2030s.
First F-35B flight test complete for SPEAR. 🇬🇧⚡
Earlier this year a SPEAR missile from @MBDAGroup successfully completed its first test flight aboard the F-35B, marking a critical step toward sovereign weapon capability for the UK’s F-35 fleet. pic.twitter.com/1PiM9zyZJb
— F-35 Lightning II (@thef35) May 21, 2026
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Source: UK Defence Journal | Photo: X @thef35 | This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team
