Swiss to Buy Fewer US F-35s After $1.6 Billion Price Hike
(Bloomberg) — Switzerland said it will buy fewer Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35 fighter jets from the US than planned, in an attempt to keep procurement costs within the limit approved by voters.
Bern said in June that it faced additional costs of as much as 1.3 billion Swiss francs ($1.6 billion), due to rising energy and raw material costs. That put it at odds with the US over the original price of 6 billion francs for the purchase of three dozen F-35s.
“Due to the foreseeable additional costs, it is not possible from a financial policy perspective to maintain the originally planned number,” the Swiss government said in a statement Friday. Instead, it now plans to procure as many fighter jets as possible within the 6 billion-franc cap.
The purchase of new jets has long been controversial in neutral Switzerland, but the timing is particularly sensitive as Bern is finalizing a deal with Washington to lower import tariffs to 15% from 39%. That comes after Swiss businesses pledged to invest $200 billion over the next five years in the US.
The F-35 procurement was approved in a popular vote in 2020 by only the thinnest of margins and was explicitly tied to the original price estimate. A poll in October showed a majority of voters were willing to walk away from a deal, either by buying an alternative jet or aborting the purchase completely.
Yet, Europe’s changed security landscape after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and US demands for the region to spend more money on defense have made it harder for small countries like Switzerland to get the weapons they need. US support for Ukraine also means that the neutral nation hasn’t been prioritized, while Swiss defense firms have suffered under strict export rules.
The government also confirmed an earlier assessment that Switzerland would require 55 to 70 modern fighter jets for a “comprehensive air defense tailored to the current threat situation,” adding that it plans to reassess at a later stage whether further procurements are possible.
Defense Minister Martin Pfister said during a press conference Friday that the cabinet “has concluded that we would require a larger fleet, but the democratic decision is such that we can’t procure 36 planes today.”
Last year, Switzerland decided to increase its defense spending to 1% of gross domestic product by 2032, which is still substantially lower than pledges by NATO members.
–With assistance from Bastian Benrath-Wright and Isabel Demetz.
(Adds more detail throughout)
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
