The F-35A fuselage midsection production facility, jointly built by Germany's Rheinmetall and the U.S. Northrop Grumman, was officially completed and opened on the 1st of this month. Located in western Germany, it becomes the world's second production line. The first batch of products is scheduled for delivery to the U.S. in the fall of next year, which is expected to enhance the production capacity of the F-35 fighter and strengthen the European supply chain.

According to reports from the military news site Army Recognition, the facility is situated in Wetz, North Rhine-Westphalia, and has been constructed with an investment of 200 million euros (approximately NT$6.8 billion). The planned annual production capacity of this line is estimated to reach 30 sets of F-35A fuselage midsections, with potential for expansion to 36 sets, targeting a total output of at least 400 sets over the next 17 to 20 years.

The facility covers an area of approximately 60,000 square meters and includes the production line for assembling F-35A fuselage midsections, as well as logistics, storage, research, testing, and training centers. It is equipped with heavy machinery imported from the United States and currently employs 200 staff, with plans to increase this number to over 400 by the end of next year.

Currently, orders for Lockheed Martin's F-35 series have significantly increased, with the German Air Force ordering 35 F-35A aircraft, expected to be delivered starting in 2027. However, although the supply chain for components is global, following Turkey's removal from the F-35 program in 2019, Northrop has had to produce fuselage midsections for all variants of the F-35 independently. Thus, the addition of Rheinmetall's new production line will help increase capacity and accelerate delivery timelines.