Polish F-35s officially named ‘Husarz’ as first aircraft moves into final assembly

The General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces announced on 29 April 2024 that, following its organisation of an online vote to come up a national name for the Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint Strike Fighter, 32 of which it has on order, the vote had been concluded.

“Dear aviation enthusiasts,” the Polish General Staff announced on X/Twitter, “we are very happy to announce that our Polish F-35 fighter now has an official name: Husarz.”

Husarz in Polish means ‘hussar’, referring to a member of a class of light cavalry that was first formed in the Kingdom of Poland at the beginning of the 16th Century.

Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin announced, also on 29 April, that the first F-35 destined for the Polish Air Force, designated AZ-01, is standing with weight on its wheels for the first time: a significant milestone for the jet as it moves down the production line at Lockheed Martin’s mile-long assembly plant in Fort Worth, Texas.

“The Polish Air Force’s first F-35 was lifted by an overhead crane earlier this month from an electronic mate and alignment station where its forward and rear fuselage sections were joined to the wing centre fuselage assembly,” Lockheed Marting stated. “The aircraft will now travel to final assembly, where its control surfaces will be added, along with final systems and engine installation.

Aircraft AZ-01 is scheduled to be delivered to the Polish Air Force later this year. It will initially be based at Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Arkansas, where Polish pilot training will take place.