Gallium is a soft, silver-colored metal that most people have never heard of. It isn’t found on its own in nature but is taken from other metals like aluminum and zinc during processing. Even though it sounds rare and unimportant, gallium plays a big role in modern military technology.
In the U.S. military’s F-35 fighter jet—a stealth aircraft known for its advanced radar and electronic systems—gallium is absolutely essential. The jet’s radar system, called the AN/APG-81, uses special chips made from gallium arsenide. These chips help the radar work at super high speeds, giving the pilot a very clear picture of what’s going on in the sky. The radar can detect enemy planes from far away, even those designed to be invisible to normal radar.
Gallium also helps these chips survive heat and radiation, which is important because military equipment has to work in extreme conditions. The F-35’s radar can track many targets at once and even attack enemy electronics. It can also share what it sees with other aircraft, satellites, and ground units in real time. This teamwork is only possible because of the gallium-based chips inside.
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The F-35 also has an electronic warfare system that jams enemy radars and protects it from missiles. These systems use a different material called gallium nitride, which is made from gallium too. The jet’s communication system also depends on gallium to send secret, high-speed messages to other parts of the military. Without gallium, none of these systems would work the way they do today.
China’s Control and the Sudden Ban
Right now, almost all of the world’s refined gallium comes from one country: China. In fact, in 2023, China produced about 98% of the global supply. This is possible because China has large amounts of bauxite, the rock used to make aluminum—and gallium is a byproduct of aluminum production. China also has the best technology for refining it.
In late 2024, China placed strict limits on how much gallium it would send to other countries, including the United States. China said this was for national security reasons, but many experts believe it was a response to new U.S. rules targeting Chinese tech companies.
These new restrictions have stopped most shipments of gallium to the U.S., and prices have gone up a lot—over 50% in just a few months. This is creating a big problem for the U.S. military, especially the F-35 program, which needs gallium-based parts to keep making jets.
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The F-35 is one of the most expensive military projects ever, with costs expected to go beyond $1.7 trillion over its lifetime. Each year, the U.S. builds about 150 of these jets. More than 1,000 have already been delivered to American and allied forces. But without gallium, it’s becoming harder to make these jets and keep them ready for action.
The radar system in each F-35 has thousands of tiny gallium-based chips. If gallium is hard to get, the U.S. may have to slow down production or even delay repairs and upgrades. This could also affect military plans with allies like Japan and Australia, who use the F-35 to help protect their countries.
How U.S. Forces Are Being Affected
The problems caused by the gallium shortage go beyond just the F-35. Other important military systems also rely on gallium. For example, the EA-18G Growler, a jet used for electronic warfare, uses gallium nitride in its jamming systems to block enemy radars and guide incoming missiles away.
Even satellites, which are key to military communication and navigation, use gallium arsenide in their solar panels. These panels work better in space than regular ones made from silicon. If there isn’t enough gallium, the U.S. may have to choose which programs to support and which to hold back.
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The Defense Logistics Agency, the part of the U.S. military that buys special materials, has tried to find gallium from other countries like Japan and Germany. But these nations don’t produce nearly enough to meet U.S. needs. The U.S. is also believed to be quietly building up emergency reserves of gallium, but supplies are still low.
Lockheed Martin, the company that builds the F-35, has said some parts are arriving late, though it hasn’t said publicly that gallium is the cause. People in the industry, however, believe gallium shortages are playing a big role behind the scenes.
This sudden drop in gallium supply is causing defense costs to rise, adding more pressure to a military budget that’s already stretched. In a world where technology decides who wins, the lack of a small but powerful metal is having a huge impact.
