Swiss shortlist US, France and Israel for new air defence system

The American Raytheon Patriot missile system is in the running for the Swiss contract. Keystone

Switzerland has asked the US, France and Israel to submit proposals to supply the country’s new long-range ground-to-air missile defence system. 

On Monday, Armasuisse – the Federal Office for Defence Procurement – announced that the first request for proposals have been delivered to government agencies connected to Eurosam SAMP/T (France), Rafael David’s Sling (Israel) and Raytheon Patriot (US). The three contenders have until the end of March 2019 to submit their proposals. 

Armasuisse plans to test the radar detectors of the three systems in Switzerland in the summer. Other components, such as missiles and control systems, will be assessed based on additional information obtained from tests in Switzerland or the country of manufacture. 

Based on the results, the manufacturers will be asked for a second proposal by November 2019. The shortlisted defence firms will then have to submit a final offer before the end of May 2020 on the basis of which an evaluation report will be drawn up and submitted to the Federal Council for consideration. 

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According to Armasuisse, the British-made BL-64 Bloodhound system used by Switzerland was decommissioned in 1999, which has created a gap in the country’s long-range ground-to-air defence capacities. 

A few positions are sufficient to cover most of the densely populated regions of Switzerland. 

The planned purchase of a new ground-to-air-defence system is part of the biggest arms procurement programme in modern Swiss history. Known as Air2030External link, the programme has a budget of CHF8 billion ($8.33 billion) to buy new combat aircraft and ground-based defences. 

This July, the government shortlisted five aircraft manufacturers to replace its ageing fleet of Northrop F-5 Tigers and F/A-18s which are scheduled to be retired in the 2020s. The new fighter jets under consideration are: the Swedish Gripen E (Saab), the French Rafale (Dassault), German Eurofighter (Airbus), and from the American side, the successor to the FA-18, the Boeing Super Hornet and the F-35A from Lockheed-Martin.