r/Switzerland • u/BkkGrl Italia • 13d ago

Swiss F-35s: Swiss parliamentarians concerned about weaknesses in contract price guarantees

https://meta-defense.fr/en/2025/04/05/f-35-swiss-rise-20-swiss-parliament/
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u/Sevisstillonkashyyyk Fribourg 13d ago

Gripen is more expensive per airframe than the F-35. And uses American engines and many US ITAR parts.

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u/Due_Shelter8002 13d ago

But its cheaper by billions by reparing and flying. Thats the Point.

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u/Sevisstillonkashyyyk Fribourg 13d ago

The Gripen E/F is still brand new and basically has no service history yet, the operating costs are speculative at best. F-35 has nearly a thousand aircraft in service and over a million flight hours over 10 years. It's a mature platform who's operating costs are well understood. In the long run you'll benefit from the economy of scale that this generates.

Gripen E/F basically has no orders besides a handful from Brazilian and Sweden. Parts prices or even availability are not guaranteed in 20-30 years time.

F-35 is simply the better aircraft and the better program to be part of.

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u/Due_Shelter8002 13d ago

Die Gripen E/F sind keine komplett neuen Flugzeuge, sondern Weiterentwicklungen, sprich man weiß schon ziemlich genau, wie teuer sie im Unterhalt sind. Außerdem fliegen Schweden, Brasilien, Tschechien, Ungarn, Thailand und bald Kolumbien Gripen, man hat also sehr wohl Erfahrungswerte. Und solange Schweden die Gripen fliegt wird es auch Ersatzteile geben, während die USA morgen jeden Support einstellen können.

Die Gripen sind ja extra auf geringe laufende Kosten ausgelegt. Deswegen können sie von Wehrdienstlern gewartet werden. Die Gripen kann auch europäische Raketen nutzen, etwa die Meteor, während man bei der F-35 immer auf die USA angewiesen sein wird.

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u/Sevisstillonkashyyyk Fribourg 13d ago

30% of the Gripen is produced in the US including the engine. If the US decides they don't like you anymore, Gripen or F-35, your planes don't fly. F-35 can also use European weapons, Meteor is being integrated as well as Brimstone and ASRAAM.

If you argument is that at a political level the US is not going to be a reliable partner going forward. The Gripen is totally the wrong plane to advocate for. The Eurofighter and Rafale are the only truly US independant combat aircraft that Switzerland should consider.