India, Spain, and Switzerland have all signaled their intention to walk away from their respective F-35 deals.
The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is “having a moment”—but not in a way the aerospace giant’s executives were hoping for. Even as it remains the most successful and widely adopted fifth-generation multirole aircraft in service today, it has hit a patch of proverbial turbulence that could impact the future of the program.
Incensed by Trump’s Tariffs, Switzerland Might Quit the F-35 Program
Nearly three years after Switzerland, a historically neutral country, signed a procurement contract for 36 F-35A Lightning IIs, there have been bipartisan calls inside the country to cancel the deal.
Lawmakers in Bern expressed concern that they had been “misled” by Lockheed Martin and the United States over the price for the three dozen stealth fighters. Now the politicians want to cancel the orders.
Once again, tariffs are part of the story. Trump has threatened to impose a 39 percent tariff rate on the Alpine nation. Bloomberg described Trump’s threatened tariff rate on Thursday as “some of the world’s harshest levies” in the world—far exceeding the relatively modest 15 percent tariff on the neighboring European Union.
It is worth noting that Switzerland’s decision to acquire the F-35 has been a controversial topic since its announcement. Even before Trump’s election, there had been repeated calls for the deal to be reviewed and, in some cases, canceled outright. In June, there were discussions over a “misunderstanding” regarding the total cost for the aircraft. While a resolution to the F-35 deal may have been possible, it will be increasingly challenging after the latest tariff threats by the United States.
“A country which throws rocks at us in trade shouldn’t get a present,” Swiss Green Party lawmaker Balthasar Glättli told Bloomberg. Glättli was among the lawmakers who called for the procurement of the Lightning II to be canceled, and he submitted a proposal that calls for the matter to be discussed in the Swiss parliament as soon as next month.
Politicians from multiple parties are now sharing similar discontent with the program as Washington imposed the tariffs. That could lead to the cancellation of the order of record for 36 aircraft, which Bloomberg noted is “about a third of what the country delivered in 2024.”
Even as Switzerland will remain neutral on the world stage, Bern has signaled that it would procure 30 percent or more of its military hardware from partners in Europe. At the same time, it has sought talks with the EU over security matters.
Counterintuitively, Bloomberg also speculated that Switzerland might move forward with the F-35 order, and possibly even increase it, to “appease Washington in tariff negotiations.” Another possibility is that lawmakers on the left will finally convince their colleagues to bail out of the F-35 deal entirely.
Switzerland could follow the lead of Spain and India. The final question is whether any other nations will adopt similar ideas about the Lightning II.
Two Countries Axed Their F-35 Acquisition Plans This Week
Soon after returning to the White House, President Donald Trump signaled that Washington was open to selling the advanced stealth fighter to India. Even as other nations, notably those in the Middle East, have expressed a desire to adopt the fighter, New Delhi made clear this week it would be a hard pass.
India may instead move forward with a co-production deal with Russia and manufacture a licensed version of the Sukhoi Su-57 (NATO reporting name “Felon”). While India’s decision was not a severe blow for the F-35 program, other countries soon began to take a similar approach. India’s abandonment of its pursuit of the F-35 highlighted how Trump’s tariff threats—a matter of major political concern around the world, given the size and global influence of the US economy—could derail other deals.
Earlier in the week, NATO member Spain also announced it was withdrawing from consideration, stating it would either acquire additional upgraded Eurofighter Typhoons or wait for the optionally manned sixth-generation fighter at the center of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) to enter service. Spain, France, and Germany are jointly developing FCAS to replace the Typhoon and the Dassault Rafale.
Madrid, like New Delhi, is standing up to the threat of tariffs and will walk away from one of its largest defense deals with Washington in the process.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a thirty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Wikimedia Commons.
