Finland should opt for F-35 over Gripen if the price is right, minister says

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Finland should reject overtures to procure the Saab Gripen E fighter aircraft, if the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) can be acquired at a comparable cost, the country's defence minister said on 22 April.

As reported in the Helsinki Times , Carl Haglund said Finland should not put Nordic defence co-operation ahead of performance when choosing between the Swedish-built Gripen E and the US-built F-35, providing there is little difference in cost between the two types.

"Although I advocate co-operation with Sweden, we should not acquire Swedish [Gripen E] fighters if we could acquire American F-35 stealth fighters for roughly the same price. Performance must take precedence in the investment," he is quoted as saying.

The proposal to strengthen Finland's defence ties with its Nordic neighbour Sweden through a Gripen E buy was made by the speaker of parliament, Eero Heinäluoma, and the country was named by Saab officials in March as a potential future customer.

While Haglund's comments would appear to indicate Finland favours the F-35 as a potential replacement for the air force's current 55 Boeing F/A-18C and seven F/A-18D Hornet fighters, his use of the word 'if' would suggest the Gripen E might be best placed to secure any such requirement.

Aircraft costs are notoriously difficult to nail down, with different manufacturers using different criteria to show their products off in the best possible light. Taking the procurement, operating, and sustainment costs, and then factoring in training, support, and offset packages causes the whole picture to become very murky indeed, with precise and verifiable figures all but impossible to calculate.

Even so, the generally held understanding is that that Gripen E and F-35 are pretty much at polar ends of the spectrum when it comes to the costs of today's latest-generation fighter aircraft, with the Swedish-built offering said to come in at about half the price of its US rival. While Lockheed Martin does say it can get the F-35's long-term cost down to levels more akin to those of its rivals, Haglund's "if" would appear, at this stage at least, to limit the F-35's prospects in any Finnish procurement programme.

However, despite the Gripen's cost advantages, Lockheed Martin will point to the F-35's success in securing the Norwegian fighter replacement requirement. In similar circumstances - up against the Gripen with a view to increased Nordic defence co-operation - the F-35 was selected in that competition on account of the type's perceived 'fifth-generation' capabilities, particularly its low observable (stealth) qualities, coupled with lucrative workshare deals for Norway's domestic industries.

While no programme of record to replace the Finnish Air Force's Hornet fighters currently exists, Haglund said that a budget of at least EUR5 billion (USD6.9 billion) would need to be set aside for such a procurement. He added that, even with this special funding, the number of new aircraft procured would be less than the current Hornet inventory.

It is likely that any future Finnish fighter procurement competition would also include offerings from Boeing with its F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, Dassault with the Rafale, and Eurofighter with the Typhoon. According to Haglund, the country's efforts are currently directed at enhancing the army, to be followed by the navy, and then the air force.

Janes IHS