New inside Canadian Defence Ministry experiences just lately obtained by Radio Canada has supplied new perception into the choice course of made beneath the Future Fighter Functionality Challenge tender, which noticed a number of Western fighter sorts evaluated in 2021. The tender noticed the Lockheed Martin F-35A chosen to interchange the F-18 Hornet within the Royal Canadian Air Pressure’s fighter fleet, with the French Rafale and pan-European Eurofighter disqualified at early phases, adopted by the Boeing F-18E/F Tremendous Hornet, leaving solely the Swedish Gripen E/F an the F-35 within the ultimate analysis. Current tensions between Canada and america have renewed requires the Defence Ministry to scale back F-35 procurements, and think about fielding a high-low mixture of F-35s and Gripens, though the outcomes of the analysis of the 2 fighters point out that an all F-35 fleet is prone to proceed to be favoured.
Based on the paperwork considered by Radio-Canada, the F-35 scored 57.1 out of 60 factors, a 95 % rating, within the tender, whereas the Gripen E/F achieved simply 19.8 factors, a 33 % rating, with their performances diverging notably sharply as soon as rated operational standards had been utilized. Such outcomes are removed from surprising, with the F-35 having been favoured by equally overwhelming margins in latest tenders in Belgium, Finland and Switzerland, and having constantly received each tender during which it has accomplished in opposition to European plane and the F-18. The fighter’s stealth capabilities, superior mixture of lively and passive sensors, knowledge sharing capabilities, and extremely potent digital warfare suite, have supplied it with a definite edge over fourth era fighters at a comparable price.
The F-35’s huge superiority over European fighter sorts has mirrored the numerous discrepancies within the broader defence sectors of america and European international locations, in addition to the far higher scale on which the U.S. conducts analysis and improvement, which is surpassed solely by that of China. In consequence, carefully coinciding with the Canadian tender, Finland’s tender noticed the F-18E/F emerge in a definite second place behind the F-35, with the Eurofighter and Rafale falling far behind. Due the very vital discrepancy in capabilities, not solely have European fighters failed to realize gross sales to markets the place the F-35 is accessible, however European states producing these plane have themselves additionally more and more been inclined to scale back procurements to put money into the F-35. This supplies a considerably higher fight functionality for a similar funding, regardless of the sacrifices this has entailed for native trade.
The UK’s determination to finish Eurofighter procurements was first reported in November 2024, with plans to obtain the F-35A had been first confirmed in June 2025, whereas the German Defence Ministry positioned its first order for F-35As in 2022 regardless of persistent lobbying efforts from native trade. Germany has since expanded Eurofighter procurement plans. France has remained the one main European Air Pressure to not have thought of ordering the F-35, though this might change as prospects for it bringing a equally succesful fighter into service earlier than the 2050s, if ever, seem more and more dim. For international locations resembling Canada which do not need stakes in sustaining much less aggressive European fighter industries, there has remained little incentive to think about procuring European fighter plane, notably as Russia continues to considerably modernise its forces within the Arctic and can start to function fifth era fighters in vital numbers from the early 2030s, and will start to obtain lengthy vary stealth bombers later that decade.
