--- title: "The SuperLightning: Can Lockheed Make a Next-Level F-35?" description: "As sixth-gen fighters loom, Lockheed Martin gambles on the “SuperLightning”—an upgraded F-35 it claims could rival next-gen jets at half the cost. Can it actually deliver? Stay ahead of global conflicts with WarFronts Weekly! Get sharp, no-nonsense military analysis straight to your inbox. 📩 Subscribe now: https://subscribepage.io/WarFrontsWeekly Love content? Check out Simon's other YouTube Channels: Megaprojects:https://www.youtube.com/@megaprojects9649 SideProjects: https://www.youtube.com/@Sideprojects Into The Shadows: https://www.youtube.com/@IntotheShadows Today I Found Out: https://www.youtube.com/@TodayIFoundOut Brain Blaze: https://www.youtube.com/@brainblaze6526 Casual Criminalist: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCasualCriminalist Decoding the Unknown: https://www.youtube.com/@decodingtheunknown2373 Places: https://www.youtube.com/@Places302 Celestium: https://www.youtube.com/@astrographics-ve4yq PoliticalFronts: http://www.youtube.com/@homefronts 00:00 Introduction 01:28 Trouble at Lockheed 09:27 Building the SuperLightning 17:03 Can It Be Done? Will It Be Done? References https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/mexicos-long-war-drugs-crime-and-cartels https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2024-08-28/are-mexican-drug-cartels-as-powerful-as-people-think https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-40480405 https://insightcrime.org/mexico-organized-crime-news/sinaloa-cartel-profile/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2024/06/29/mexican-cartels-increased-firepower-us-weapons/74226110007/ https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/how-us-military-action-against-drug-cartels-in-mexico-could-unfold/ https://www.iiss.org/publications/armed-conflict-survey/2024/the-expansion-and-diversification-of-mexican-cartels-dynamic-new-actors-and-markets/ https://www.ft.com/content/fe04c6ed-73f8-4e17-852b-ce16fd6c3515 https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief-2025-march-14/ https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-mexicos-cartel-jalisco-nueva-generacion-rules/ https://stories.theconversation.com/mexican-drug-cartels-use-hundreds-of-thousands-of-guns-bought-from-licensed-us-gun-shops-fueling-violence-in-mexico-drugs-in-the-u-s-and-migration-at-the-border/index.html https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/infographics-arms-trafficking-across-us-mexico-border https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/mexican-cartels-atf-guns-usa-1235004978/ https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/us-intervention-against-mexican-cartels-carries-major-risks-heres-how-to-mitigate-them/ https://insightcrime.org/news/mexicos-narco-tanks-are-going-from-impractical-to-tactical/ https://www.borderreport.com/immigration/border-crime/cartels-flew-drones-60000-times-along-us-border-in-six-month-period/ https://apnews.com/article/mexico-police-chiapas-cartels-drones-border-a834e98af1edde5e6848c7cfb1295423 https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/trump-administration-weighs-drone-strikes-mexican-cartels-rcna198930 https://www.twz.com/news-features/cartel-members-fought-in-ukraine-to-learn-fpv-drone-skills-report https://apnews.com/article/mexico-security-trump-sheinbaum-lopez-obrador-ddb4d905e38bab9b9a1560df28a06331 https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2025-06-09/mexican-cartels-are-now-recruiting-colombian-mercenaries https://insightcrime.org/mexico-organized-crime-news/jalisco-cartel-new-generation/ https://www.crashoutmedia.com/p/mexicos-cartel-map-2024 https://acleddata.com/report/how-sinaloa-cartel-rift-redrawing-mexicos-criminal-map https://www.btl-research.com/p/mexican-cartels-how-the-worlds-most https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250601-mexicans-elect-their-judges-under-shadow-of-organized-crime https://www.csis.org/analysis/no-checks-power-effects-mexicos-judicial-reform-foreign-investment-and-usmca https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/29/world/americas/mexico-judicial-election-candidates.html https://insightcrime.org/news/judicial-elections-organized-crime-mexico/ https://www.crashoutmedia.com/p/how-much-of-mexico-is-governed-by https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/09/trump-mexico-organised-crime-corruption https://www.foreignaffairs.com/mexico/hole-mexicos-security-strategy https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-pushes-mexico-prosecute-politicians-with-ties-drug-cartels-2025-06-11/ https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/01/world/americas/mexico-corruption-trump.html https://www.visionofhumanity.org/mexicos-organised-criminal-landscape/ https://mwi.westpoint.edu/cartels-corruption-and-fentanyl-how-can-us-mexico-cooperation-address-shared-security-concerns/ https://chicagopolicyreview.org/2021/06/04/drug-cartels-politics-and-violence-in-mexico/ https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/political-violence-mexicos-2024-elections-organized-crime-involvement" url: https://fronts.co/videos/warfronts-zdyhgb9srnq.md canonical: https://fronts.co/videos/warfronts-zdyhgb9srnq/ datePublished: 2025-08-05T17:00:47.000Z dateModified: 2025-08-05T17:00:47.000Z author: - name: Fronts Staff url: https://fronts.co/authors/fronts-team/ publisher: Fronts type: NewsArticle language: en access: members isAccessibleForFree: false tokens: 1219 --- As sixth-gen fighters loom, Lockheed Martin gambles on the “SuperLightning”—an upgraded F-35 it claims could rival next-gen jets at half the cost. Can it actually deliver? Stay ahead of global conflicts with WarFronts Weekly! Get sharp, no-nonsense military analysis straight to your inbox. 📩 Subscribe now: https://subscribepage.io/WarFrontsWeekly Love content? Check out Simon's other YouTube Channels: Megaprojects:https://www.youtube.com/@megaprojects9649 SideProjects: https://www.youtube.com/@Sideprojects Into The Shadows: https://www.youtube.com/@IntotheShadows Today I Found Out: https://www.youtube.com/@TodayIFoundOut Brain Blaze: https://www.youtube.com/@brainblaze6526 Casual Criminalist: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCasualCriminalist Decoding the Unknown: https://www.youtube.com/@decodingtheunknown2373 Places: https://www.youtube.com/@Places302 Celestium: https://www.youtube.com/@astrographics-ve4yq PoliticalFronts: http://www.youtube.com/@homefronts 00:00 Introduction 01:28 Trouble at Lockheed 09:27 Building the SuperLightning 17:03 Can It Be Done? Will It Be Done? References https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/mexicos-long-war-drugs-crime-and-cartels https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2024-08-28/are-mexican-drug-cartels-as-powerful-as-people-think https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-40480405 https://insightcrime.org/mexico-organized-crime-news/sinaloa-cartel-profile/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2024/06/29/mexican-cartels-increased-firepower-us-weapons/74226110007/ https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/how-us-military-action-against-drug-cartels-in-mexico-could-unfold/ https://www.iiss.org/publications/armed-conflict-survey/2024/the-expansion-and-diversification-of-mexican-cartels-dynamic-new-actors-and-markets/ https://www.ft.com/content/fe04c6ed-73f8-4e17-852b-ce16fd6c3515 https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief-2025-march-14/ https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-mexicos-cartel-jalisco-nueva-generacion-rules/ https://stories.theconversation.com/mexican-drug-cartels-use-hundreds-of-thousands-of-guns-bought-from-licensed-us-gun-shops-fueling-violence-in-mexico-drugs-in-the-u-s-and-migration-at-the-border/index.html https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/infographics-arms-trafficking-across-us-mexico-border https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/mexican-cartels-atf-guns-usa-1235004978/ https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/us-intervention-against-mexican-cartels-carries-major-risks-heres-how-to-mitigate-them/ https://insightcrime.org/news/mexicos-narco-tanks-are-going-from-impractical-to-tactical/ https://www.borderreport.com/immigration/border-crime/cartels-flew-drones-60000-times-along-us-border-in-six-month-period/ https://apnews.com/article/mexico-police-chiapas-cartels-drones-border-a834e98af1edde5e6848c7cfb1295423 https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/trump-administration-weighs-drone-strikes-mexican-cartels-rcna198930 https://www.twz.com/news-features/cartel-members-fought-in-ukraine-to-learn-fpv-drone-skills-report https://apnews.com/article/mexico-security-trump-sheinbaum-lopez-obrador-ddb4d905e38bab9b9a1560df28a06331 https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2025-06-09/mexican-cartels-are-now-recruiting-colombian-mercenaries https://insightcrime.org/mexico-organized-crime-news/jalisco-cartel-new-generation/ https://www.crashoutmedia.com/p/mexicos-cartel-map-2024 https://acleddata.com/report/how-sinaloa-cartel-rift-redrawing-mexicos-criminal-map https://www.btl-research.com/p/mexican-cartels-how-the-worlds-most https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250601-mexicans-elect-their-judges-under-shadow-of-organized-crime https://www.csis.org/analysis/no-checks-power-effects-mexicos-judicial-reform-foreign-investment-and-usmca https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/29/world/americas/mexico-judicial-election-candidates.html https://insightcrime.org/news/judicial-elections-organized-crime-mexico/ https://www.crashoutmedia.com/p/how-much-of-mexico-is-governed-by https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/09/trump-mexico-organised-crime-corruption https://www.foreignaffairs.com/mexico/hole-mexicos-security-strategy https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-pushes-mexico-prosecute-politicians-with-ties-drug-cartels-2025-06-11/ https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/01/world/americas/mexico-corruption-trump.html https://www.visionofhumanity.org/mexicos-organised-criminal-landscape/ https://mwi.westpoint.edu/cartels-corruption-and-fentanyl-how-can-us-mexico-cooperation-address-shared-security-concerns/ https://chicagopolicyreview.org/2021/06/04/drug-cartels-politics-and-violence-in-mexico/ https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/political-violence-mexicos-2024-elections-organized-crime-involvement --- Full analysis is behind the paywall. Read the gated piece at https://fronts.co/videos/warfronts-zdyhgb9srnq/.