Northrop Grumman Leverages Advanced Tech to Build All Three F-35 Lightning II Variant Center Fuselages

Palmdale, Calif. – July 1, 2025 – Northrop Grumman (NYSE: NOC) manufactures center fuselages for all three variants of the F-35 Lighting II stealth fighter at its Integrated Assembly Line (IAL) in Palmdale, California. Employing advanced manufacturing technologies, the IAL delivers one F-35 center fuselage every 30 hours to meet U.S. and international customer needs. The IAL came online in 2011 and has enabled Northrop Grumman to deliver over 1,400 center fuselages for the F-35 program. Northrop Grumman is a principal partner and teammate on the F-35 Lightning II industry team, that is developing, producing and sustaining three variants of this stealthy, supersonic, multirole fighter aircraft.

Photo courtesy Northrop Grumman