Fort Worth plays a vital role in building the country’s arsenal of freedom, the nation’s secretary of defense said.
Pete Hegseth praised the F-35 Lightning II assembly workers Monday afternoon as he visited historic Air Force Plant 4, where the stealth fighter jets are assembled.
As Van Halen’s “Jump” played, Hegseth entered the 1.2-mile-long plant at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, where he was greeted by about 800 Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. employees, many wearing red, white and blue F-35-branded caps.
The event, planned since late December, included the ironing of dozens of flags outside the company’s Fort Worth facility.
U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, congressional representatives and Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker were on hand for the visit, dubbed the Arsenal of Freedom tour.
“I’m looking out into an incredible audience of Americans here who are committed to an incredible company that’s building incredible platforms,” Hegseth said. “Thank you for accepting and grasping the challenge of President Trump as well as our department. Thank you all so much for what you do, for why you’re doing it. We are shoulder to shoulder with you because we can’t deter the next conflict without the skills and capabilities you have.”
Hegseth, who uses the title secretary of war, praised President Donald Trump’s efforts to bolster American defense manufacturing, citing his vision, leadership and steadfast commitment to a strong military. Trump calls the Department of Defense the Department of War; however, Congress must amend such a title for it to be legal.
The secretary repeated his warrior mantra — “no more DEI, no more dudes in dresses” — to applause during his address. “Those days are over,” he said.
Hegseth said Trump will significantly increase defense spending in fiscal year 2027 to $1.5 trillion. Those funds, he said, will enable America to reassert its dominance as a global superpower to preserve peace.
“We’re going to spend every dime of that wisely,” he said.
Hegseth said the U.S. border with Mexico is more secure under Trump, and America is showing its might through the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cicilia, on Jan. 3. The pair were transported to the United States to face drug trafficking charges.
“No other military on Earth can pull off what those warriors did,” he said.
He also cited U.S. military might in destroying alleged drug boats in the Caribbean, a tactic that appears to be working.
“We can’t find (more) boats to sink,” Hegseth said. “They don’t want to get into narco boats.”
Some in Congress and elsewhere questioned the legality of such tactics, including whether the U.S. should forcibly remove a government leader.
Hegseth signed an F-35 during his Fort Worth visit. His tour in Texas also included a stop in Irving, where he spoke to recruits and delivered the oath of enlistment at the Navy Talent Acquisition Group Red River, as well as a stop at Elon Musk’s SpaceX in South Texas.
Hegseth said 20% of Lockheed Martin’s workforce includes veterans. “That’s incredible,” he said.
As Trump ramps up military manufacturing, he said big and small companies will compete for defense contracts.
“I know and I believe that Lockheed will step up,” he said.
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics announced earlier this month that the company had a record-breaking year in 2025, delivering 191 aircraft for the Fort Worth plant — assembly that is five times faster than any other allied fighter in production, officials said.
“You make incredible, exquisite platforms,” he said. “It’s about warriors and what we can deliver.”
He urged Lockheed Martin employees to be ambitious and have an urgency of the moment to get defensive tools and equipment into the hands of “warrior fighters.”
In September, Lockheed Martin and the F-35 Joint Program Office finalized a $24 billion agreement of Lots 18-19 that calls for the production and delivery of 296 F-35 jets — one of the largest production contracts in program history. Another agreement supports sustainment activities across the F-35 program beyond 2025.
A total of 12 nations currently use nearly 1,300 F-35 aircraft. Officials said the F-35 has proven its performance in combat operations, including suppressing Iranian air defense during Operation Midnight Hammer and eliminating Russian drones over Poland’s airspace.
“The F-35 is the most advanced multi-mission fighter jet in the world as clearly shown in many recent and successful military engagements around the world,” said Jim Taiclet, chairman, president and CEO of Lockheed Martin Corp. “Our U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine F-35 pilots, along with those of our allies, ensure air superiority when they take to the skies and are critical contributors to President Trump’s strategy of peace through strength.”
Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
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