'Written in our DNA': Polish pilots who remember Soviet rule prepare for America's most lethal fighter jet

LASK, Poland — Poland is expected to person its first F-35 combatant jets "very, very soon", Polish Deputy Defense Minister Paweł Zalewski told Fox News Digital, arsenic American and Polish forces hole together astatine a cardinal NATO aerial guidelines adjacent nan alliance’s eastbound flank.

Fox News Digital received exclusive entree to Poland's 32nd Tactical Air Base successful Lask, wherever commanders pointed to nan hangars being prepared for nan presence of nan U.S.- made fifth-generation aircraft, portion of Poland's $4.6 cardinal acquisition of 32 F-35 from Lockheed Martin.

The jets person not arrived yet, but nan business down them already has.

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F-35 combatant aircrafts alert complete nan White House during Polish President Karol Nawrocki's sojourn successful Washington, DC connected September 3, 2025. Trump and Nawrocki discussed nan flyover successful representation of a Polish aviator who precocious died successful training, calling him a "legend." (Oliver Contreras/AFP via Getty Images.))

Polish and American unit train, run and successful immoderate cases are stationed together connected nan base, reflecting nan unusually adjacent subject narration betwixt Warsaw and Washington astatine a clip erstwhile NATO burden-sharing remains nether governmental scrutiny.

Lt. Col. Pete Nanoslawski, commandant of nan 52nd Operations Group Detachment 1 of nan U.S. Air Force, primitively from New York and stationed successful Poland for nan past 5 years, told Fox News Digital that Poland’s subject modernization has importantly deepened practice betwixt nan 2 militaries.

"We are experiencing unthinkable support from Polish-provided logistics support and Polish-provided infrastructure," Nanoslawski said while opinionated alongside Polish commanders connected nan base.

A Polish F-16 astatine nan 32nd Tactical Air Base successful Lask. (Efrat Lachter/Fox News Digital)

He said Poland’s finance successful American subject systems and associated operations reflects really earnestly Warsaw views threats from Russia. "Their overseas subject income portfolio is an appetite that’s insatiable, and rightfully so."

The adjacent narration betwixt nan 2 militaries was visible passim nan visit. As Polish commanders said astir practice pinch nan United States, they often turned toward their American counterparts pinch familiarity that went beyond general confederation language.

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"We speak nan aforesaid language, only pinch different accents," Col. aviator Krzysztof Duda, commandant of nan 32nd Tactical Air Base successful Lask, told Fox News Digital.

Duda, who studied successful nan United States and attended nan U.S. Air War College, described himself arsenic "a kid of nan American acquisition system."

"The matrimony we person pinch nan U.S. connected nan subject level, moreover if you want to divorce, we would not," Duda said pinch a smile,"But we don’t want nan divorce."

Nanoslawski added that nan American beingness successful Poland provides "enhanced guardant beingness and nan expertise to maneuver and set rapidly."

President Donald Trump shakes hands pinch Polish President Karol Nawrocki, during a gathering successful nan Oval Office of nan White House, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025, successful Washington.  (Evan Vucci/AP Photo )

The business is now entering a caller shape pinch nan integration of nan U.S.-made F-35 into Poland’s aerial unit fleet.

Poland signed a $4.6 cardinal statement successful 2020 to acquisition 32 F-35A combatant jets manufactured by Lockheed Martin.

Duda, who is overseeing nan implementation process astatine Lask, said nan modulation involves years of training, infrastructure upgrades and coordination pinch nan United States.

Training to go an F35 aviator is not conscionable a agelong process, it's an costly 1 excessively — Duda estimates that it costs astir $55 cardinal per pilot.

The guidelines itself has undergone extended modernization to hole for nan aircraft, including caller operational infrastructure, attraction systems and classified accommodation required nether American certification standards.

In an question and reply pinch Fox News Digital successful Warsaw, Polish Deputy Defense Minister Paweł Zalewski confirmed nan first F-35 presence is expected soon. "I tin corroborate that it will beryllium very, very soon," Zalewski said.

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A Polish and American emblem seen astatine nan 32nd-Tactical Airbase successful Lask-Poland. (Efrat Lachter/Fox News)

"F-35s provides very, very important capabilities, truthful it offers domination successful nan air. That is important successful nan battlefield nowadays," he added. "It will beryllium a capacity developed together pinch Americans."

At a clip erstwhile NATO burden-sharing remains a recurring statement successful Washington, Poland has emerged arsenic 1 of nan alliance’s strongest subject partners, dramatically expanding defense spending, purchasing American weapons systems and hosting U.S. forces.

For galore Polish officers, nan threat from Moscow is profoundly personal.

Lt. Col. "Shooter," a Polish F-16 aviator astatine nan base, told Fox News Digital that countries connected NATO’s eastbound flank still transportation memories of Soviet domination.

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"There are still group that lived successful communism," he said. "We remember, and we don’t want thing for illustration that to hap again."

Looking astatine Russia’s actions successful Chechnya, Georgia, Crimea and Ukraine, he said Poland believes deterrence is essential.

"We person this intuition astir apt written successful our DNA," Shooter said. "When they are doing something, they’re not going to extremity unless nan costs of nan further cognition is going to beryllium much than what they’re going to gain."

According to nan U.S. Air Force, Polish pilots began F-35 training successful nan United States successful 2024, including astatine Ebbing Air National Guard Base successful Arkansas. The 33rd Fighter Wing announced successful February that a Polish aviator had completed nan first formation connected Poland’s caller F-35A craft arsenic portion of nan training program.

Lockheed Martin told Fox News Digital that "integration of nan F-35 into nan Polish Air Force fleet advances location deterrence, enhances interoperability and strengthens European security."

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"As seen successful caller combat and aerial policing operations, nan F-35 is actively helping defend NATO and allied airspace by deterring and defeating threats, and it will protect Poland’s nationalist information for decades to come," a institution spokesperson said.

The institution added that preparations are continuing for Poland’s first in-country F-35 presence ceremony astatine Lask successful June.