F-35 programme reaches ODIN milestone and begins retiring the ALIS maintenance system

The F-35 Joint Program Office said on 2 November 2026 that it has reached the “ODIN Inflection Point”, the milestone that allows the programme to start retiring the Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS), the long-criticised maintenance software of the F-35 fleet, in favour of the Operational Data Integrated Network (ODIN).

According to the office, the first release of ODIN operating software has been delivered and validated by an operational test squadron, and new ODIN hardware with faster processing has replaced legacy ALIS hardware across the fleet. Reaching the criteria clears the way to begin retiring the remaining ALIS components.

What ODIN is meant to change

The office lists four advantages: faster performance and reliability, with lower latency and quicker data synchronisation; stronger cybersecurity through updated security features and hardened infrastructure; a lower sustainment burden from modern hardware and modular software; and a design shaped by feedback from maintainers. It says future ODIN releases will expand interoperability, data transparency and automation.

The transition followed a phased approach carried out with U.S. services, international partners and industry. The Maintenance Systems Program Management Office coordinated fielding at U.S., partner and foreign military sales locations around the world.

Official comments

U.S. Air Force Col. Nick Scotch, the F-35 Joint Program Office’s Maintenance Systems programme manager, called the milestone “a major step forward”. Jason Brooks, Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Maintenance Systems programme director, said the success was enabled by “innovative engineering combined with insight of the warfighter community”.

Why it matters for F-35 operators

ALIS is the logistics and maintenance information system that every F-35 operator connects to, which is why a replacement affects air forces beyond the United States. Recent Geopolitiki coverage of the fleet includes F-35: Pentagon and Lockheed Martin unveil framework deal for 850 US jets over ten years and multiyear production of 156 aircraft a year. The announcement does not give a date for the full retirement of ALIS or say how much the change will cost.