The U.S. Marine Corps has begun preliminary work on the concept of a sixth-generation fighter jet, likely similar to the U.S. Navy’s future carrier-based aircraft under the F/A-XX program.
This was reported by Breaking Defense.
According to Lieutenant General William Swan, the Marine Corps’ deputy commandant for aviation, the idea has already begun to take shape.
“I think right now, if you had to say, ‘Hey, what is it going to look like?’ I think it’ll look a lot more like what the Navy’s doing because we still fly off the carriers, we’re part of the Department of the Navy,” Swan said.
He said he had instructed his team to include a sixth-generation fighter in the aviation plan because he wanted the Marine Corps to begin examining “a couple different ways” toward that goal. The plan envisages a sixth-generation fighter for the Marine Corps after 2041.
“We’re fast following with the Air Force, right? They got the F-47, the Navy’s looking at F/A-XX, and they’re just starting on that. So we are going to watch. We want an all Block 4 F-35 fleet, and that’s probably going to take another 10 years,” Swan said. “So we’re probably five to 10 years away from ultimately making that decision, and we’ll see what they have, see what the threat looks like,” he explained.
F/A-XX
The F/A-XX program is a U.S. Navy initiative to develop a sixth-generation fighter jet to replace the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and complement the F-35C in the 2030s.
The new aircraft is expected to operate effectively in conditions of strong enemy air defenses and perform a wide range of tasks, from aerial refueling and reconnaissance to surveillance, targeting and electronic warfare.
In August 2025, Northrop Grumman released the first official concept of a future sixth-generation carrier-based fighter jet, the F/A-XX.
Shortly before that, the White House expressed concern that the industrial base would be working on two sixth-generation fighters at the same time, which could lead to delays in the Air Force’s F-47 program.
In addition, the Pentagon asked Congress to allocate an additional $500 million for the development of the F-47, while planning to withdraw those funds from the Navy fighter program. At the same time, the House Armed Services Committee did not agree with the Pentagon’s request because the department did not provide a clear explanation for the change in priorities.
In February 2026, the Pentagon reversed its decision on delaying development of the new carrier-based fighter. In total, almost $900 million is planned for development of the F/A-XX in fiscal year 2026.
