Stronger Emphasis Needed on Re-shoring Defense Supply Chain
Defense Opinion
Sunday, May 31st, 2026
Stronger Emphasis Needed on Re-shoring Defense Supply Chain
When most people look at a piece of military hardware, say an F-35, they see a single unit – a jet fighter. But in reality, it is an almost unfathomably complex integration of thousands upon thousands of individual parts, each one crucial to the operation of the machine, the failure of any one of which could mean failure of the mission or the loss of an American servicemember.
The F-35’s engine alone is composed of more than 45,000 parts, each critical to the aircraft’s performance and many of which are manufactured overseas or contain raw materials that are mined in other countries, not all of whom have our best interests at heart.
It’s easy to see how this is a problem, especially as our military, along with those of our allies, are operating F-35s in the most critical conflict zones like the Persian Gulf – and it’s not limited to the F-35.
If we cannot produce the components needed for our most advanced weapon systems domestically, then we could find ourselves at the mercy of stalled global supply chains. Any number of complications at any time could interrupt the supply of materials from overseas, including geopolitical factors.
https://www.defensedaily.com/commentary/stronger-emphasis-needed-on-re-shoring-defense-supply-chain/
