Five Fighter Jet Production Lines Still Running Decades After Their First Flight

Five fighter jet designs are still rolling off assembly lines today, years after their first prototypes ever left the ground. This list ranks those five production lines by the exact size of that gap, from a 37-year-old Russian-designed airframe that only go back into production in India after a five-year stoppage, up to an American design now flying after 54 years since its maiden flight and still being built new in St.Louis. Along the way, it names the specific factory, contract, and delivery milestone behind each one, and flags the one line on this list that isn’t actually continuous.