On Friday, March 6, 2026, the Swiss Federal Council (the cabinet) announced that during its meeting that day it had decided to continue the acquisition of American Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II multirole aircraft under the New Fighter Aircraft program (Neues Kampfflugzeug, NKF), but also decided to reduce the size of the order.
American F-35A during the tests in the Switzerland / Photo: USAF
As stated in the press release, in light of the escalating security situation the Federal Council reaffirmed its decision of December 12, 2025, to purchase F-35A multirole aircraft. The maximum possible number of aircraft should be acquired within the financial framework approved by citizens. For fiscal policy reasons, the Federal Council has decided not to take out an additional loan in order to achieve the originally planned number of 36 aircraft. However, to compensate for additional costs caused by inflation, changes in raw material prices, and other factors, the Federal Council decided at its meeting on March 6, 2026, to submit a request to parliament for an additional loan of 394 million CHF as part of the Armeebotschaft 2026, thereby making use of the approved financial volume.
It should be recalled that on September 19, 2022, the Swiss federal defense procurement agency Armasuisse signed a contract worth 6.035 billion CHF for the purchase of 36 F-35A aircraft. Earlier, on September 15, the Swiss Federal Assembly (parliament) approved the selection originally announced on June 30, 2021, together with five batteries of MIM-104 Patriot PAC-3+ air and missile defense systems under the ground-based air defense program (Bodluv; Bodengestützte-Luft-Verteidigung). It is worth noting that, according to information published the same day, this program is experiencing a five-year delay, which is why additional purchases in Europe are being considered.
After accounting for inflation by the end of 2025, the value of the contract rose to 6.429 billion CHF. Therefore, the aforementioned loan was requested. The U.S. government cites inflation, rising raw material prices, and other factors as the reasons for the cost increase.
The Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport currently estimates that, together with the additional credit, it will be possible to finance the purchase of 30 F-35A aircraft. However, the exact number will only be determined once the U.S. government finalizes contracts with manufacturers for aircraft and engines for subsequent production batches.
As emphasized, purchasing the originally planned 36 F-35A aircraft would require an additional credit of about 1.1 billion CHF. For fiscal reasons, the Federal Council has refrained from requesting such additional funding from the Federal Assembly. This is despite the fact that reducing the number below 36 aircraft would have negative consequences, particularly for operational capabilities and stability during periods of heightened tension and conflict, given the current security situation. As already reported on December 12, a comprehensive air defense system adapted to the current threat environment would require between 55 and 70 modern multirole aircraft, according to a group of ministry experts (it is worth adding that Lockheed Martin’s original offer amounted to 40 aircraft – editor’s note).
Options that would lead to a further reduction of the F-35A fleet were rejected for security reasons, including in particular withdrawal from the contract. Such a step, even under normal circumstances, would result in serious limitations in protecting the country and its population.
To ensure that Switzerland can submit a declaration to the U.S. government on the final number of F-35A aircraft by no later than the second quarter of 2027, and thus retain its production slots, the additional credit of CHF 394 million will be submitted to the Federal Assembly as part of the armed forces modernization program Armeebotschaft 2026.
It should also be recalled that on June 26, 2024, the Swiss company RUAG Aerostructures Schweiz AG (part of Pilatus Aircraft Ltd.) announced that it had received preliminary approval to assemble the first four F-35A aircraft. However, this was part of the Americans’ industrial offer, conditional on ordering 36–40 aircraft. The question remains whether this will change once the final size of the order reduction is determined.
The first press reports about a possible reduction, or even cancellation, of the F-35A order appeared in August 2025.
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