F-35 costs ‘were never fixed’: former Swiss audit chief

The F-35 jets might cost Swiss taxpayers more than they bargained for Keystone

The former head of the Swiss Federal Audit Office claims the cost of procuring United States F-35 fighter jets was always likely to over-run as no fixed price had been guaranteed.

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Speaking to Swiss public broadcaster RTS, Michel Huissoud said the risks were downplayed due to a rushed political decision and a dilution of responsibilities.

The controversial CHF6 billion purchase of 36 F-35 jet planes could cost the Swiss taxpayer up to CHF1.5 billion extra, it was revealed last week. Two confidential sources within the federal administration confirm that no firm price has been agreed with the US contrary to government claims.

Huissoud said he first sounded the alarm in 2022. “Personally, it saddens me a little. I think it’s a shame, and as a taxpayer, it’s a lost opportunity,” he told RTS.

At the time, his colleagues at the Federal Audit Office had thoroughly examined the documents. “Two lawyers went to look at all the contracts, the general conditions, the correspondence, the opinions that had been given. They weren’t able to make copies, but they took notes, and they arrived at the conclusions that are in the report.”

Their conclusion? There was no guaranteed fixed price.

While other legal experts and the American embassy claim otherwise, Huissoud remains sceptical: “I haven’t seen the other legal opinions. They haven’t been published. So we can’t do anything with them. As for the ambassador, that’s nice, but I’m not sure he can contractually bind the United States.”

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Did Switzerland acted in good faith in this matter, as it claims? “We mainly wanted to believe it, I think,” Huissoud said.

And according to him, politicians also bear their share of responsibility. “The two public safety committees, the National Management Committee, and the finance delegation were informed of the risk. But they refused to investigate the problem further.”

“It was a game of hot potatoes,” he added. “The management committee said that the issue of pricing was the responsibility of the finance committee and the finance delegation said the opposite.”

For the former senior official, the decision to purchase these aircraft came in a tense political context, against the backdrop of a popular initiative with more than 120,000 signatures that was against the procurement.

Signing the contract quickly with the US was meant to neutralize this initiative, Huissoud said.

Adapted from French by DeepL/mga

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