New Delhi, Sept. 30 -- The Pentagon awarded Boeing a $20 billion contract to develop and build the US Navy's next-generation fighter jets, officials announced Tuesday (local time).

The deal marks Boeing's second major fighter-jet contract in a row, ending months of delays in a programme considered important to US efforts to counter China in the Pacific, Reuters reported.

In March 2025, Boeing was selected to build the US Air Force's new F-47 fighter jets, giving the company two major sixth-generation jet contracts in consecutive years.

The competition for the Navy's next-generation fighter narrowed to Boeing and Northrop Grumman after Lockheed Martin Corp. was removed from the race in March 2025, when US Navy officials determined that ...