James Cropper plc has an export license to supply parts for F35 fighter planes.

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50 of these planes have been sold to Israel, and Israel has ordered a further 25 planes- which will be delivered from 2028 onwards.

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Israel has used these planes extensively in the war on Gaza, playing a central role in the bombings, including the use of multi-ton bombs, capable of causing indiscriminate killings of civilians across a wide area. Evidence has emerged of the direct role of F35s in one particularly deadly attack, in which took place in Mawasi in the humanitarian zone - killing dozens of civilians.

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Israel's F35s have also been used in attacks on Lebanon, Syria, Iran and Qatar.​  In contrast to operations in Gaza, in these missions, F-35 stealth capabilities may well have played a significant role. Again, in this way, Croppers is actively implicated in the escalation of conflict in the Middle East.

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In response to the use of these planes in violation of international law, a number of court cases are challenging the export of materials from companies in the UK, the Netherlands, Canada and Denmark. 

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On Dec 19, 2023, it was reported in the security tradepaper The Cipher Brief that the Pentagon was ‘learning a tremendous amount’ from the deployment of F-35s in Gaza. But what was being tested on children in Gaza was not simply the planes and the bombs they dropped. It was the supply chains that keep the F-35s battle ready. 

In the words of F-35 Program Executive Officer, Lt. Gen. Michael Schmidt, it is all the systems for keeping F-35s in the air that “are being tested through the current conflict in Israel. Since the war began on 7 October, [the U.S.] Government and industry personnel have worked together to meet emerging Israeli requirements. From operational and technical perspectives, our aircraft and global supply system are proving resilient."

There is no escaping the fact that James Cropper is a link in the F-35 global supply chain that is ‘proving resilient’.

​Although the UK government has suspended 30 export licenses for weapons being sold to Israel, the government is allowing the export of parts for F35s to continue (claiming that suspending the export of F35 parts to Israel would disrupt the global supply chain, as it is not possible to trace where the parts ultimately end up).

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As a result, James Cropper plc and other UK companies continue exporting parts for F35s being used by Israel.​