HOUSTON: Germany on Friday received the first of nearly three dozen F-35 stealth warplanes it ordered four years ago, the aircraft’s US manufacturer said. In a ceremony at its production facility in Fort Worth, Texas, Lockheed Martin “presented Germany’s first F-35A Lightning II to the German government,” the company said in a statement. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who attended the event, hailed the plane as “the world’s most advanced combat aircraft” and said the handover marked “the beginning of a new era for the German Air Force,” the statement said. “It is characterized by its stealth capabilities, close integration with other platforms, and exceptionally powerful sensor technology,” Pistorius added. Germany ordered 35 of the jets in a deal inked in 2022 — the year Russia launched its all-out invasion of Ukraine — with the aim of replacing Berlin’s aging fleet of Tornado aircraft. The F-35 has a shape and low-observability coating that make it very difficult to detect on radar. Washington has used the jets in combat against Iran, and Lockheed says there are more than 1,350 F-35s currently in operation around the world. US President Donald Trump’s administration has long pressured Europe to spend more on defense to allow Washington to focus on other challenges such as countering China. European countries including Germany are ramping up military budgets as a result, agreeing in 2025 to Trump’s demand to devote five percent of GDP to security-related spending by 2035.