The US State Department has approved two FMS packages for the F-35 and F/A-18 should one or other be selected as the winning aircraft for Finland’s €10 billion ($11.82 billion) HX fighter acquisition.
A package for 50 F/A-18E Super Hornet, eight F/A-18F Super Hornet, 14 EA-18G Growler aircraft, assorted weapons and subsystems, at an estimated cost of $14.7 billion has been cleared.
Similarly, approval for 64 F-35A aircraft alongside air-to-air, air-to-ground missiles and associated equipment, worth $12.5 billion has been granted.
HX test and evaluations of F-35A, Eurofighter Typhoon, Gripen E/F, GlobalEye, Rafale and F/A-18 and E/A-18G aircraft were completed by Finland during flight trials in January and February.
Helsinki is set to send best and final offer requests to industry competitors before the end of 2020, ahead of a contract award for the programme set to be issued in 2021.
New aircraft will replace a fleet of legacy F/A-18C/D fighters.
H-X Fighter Programme (Finland)
Equipment has continued to flow into Ukraine from the European Union (EU), NATO and western countries as the war against Russia continues but other types of support with longer-term prospects are appearing.
The UK’s National Security Strategy brings together the recently released Strategic Defence Review (SDR), Strategic Security Review, AUKUS Review and Industrial and Trade Strategies. At the same time, the UK made a commitment to reach defence spending of 5% of GDP by 2035 and Germany committed to 3.5% by 2029.
The House Committee on Appropriations approved a FY2026 bill reducing investments in main defence programmes.
Holographic and 3D technologies have been lauded by some for their ability to provide technical and operational advantages for military training and planning. But is the hype truly justified?
Shephard talked to multiple experts about the most pressing concerns and considerations regarding the air defence system advocated by President Trump.
While industry reception to the SDR has been positive, questions still remain from analyst and trade associations about what this could mean for future investment and the future UK Defence Industrial Strategy.
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