Canada has picked Lockheed Martin Corp. and the F-35 as the preferred bidder in its competition to buy a new fighter jet, government officials said Monday, in a clear sign the U.S. contractor is set to win the multibillion-dollar contract.
Canada is planning to buy 88 new fighter jets to replace its aging fleet. The government has budgeted about CA$19 billion (US$15 billion) for the purchase.
The move indicates Canada – under pressure to boost defense spending as the war in Ukraine rages – is closer to making a decision that has been dragged out for more than a decade.
"This announcement marks another important milestone in Canada’s competitive process to purchase modern fighter jets for the Royal Canadian Air Force," Procurement Minister Filomena Tassi said.
She noted that Lockheed Martin was deemed to be the top-ranked bidder.
Delivery of the first aircraft would be scheduled for 2025 if an agreement is reached. If an agreement is not reached the government has the option to enter into talks with Saab, whose Gripen fighter came second to the F-35 in the competition.
Canada has a close relationship with the United States, which includes using fighter jets together to defend North American air space. It previously ruled out Boeing’s Super Hornet.
Canada has been trying unsuccessfully for more than a decade to replace its aging F-18 fighters.
A former Conservative Canadian government previously announced the purchase of the F-35, but the current Liberal government delayed that purchase and opened up the bidding to competition. Tassi said Canada will get a better deal now.
Before becoming prime minister, Justin Trudeau said Canada wouldn’t buy the F-35.
Defense Minister Anita Anand said the decision to pick the F-35 was done without political interference.
"We’re living in a new reality," Anand said in reference to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
"The F-35 is in operational use by NORAD and NATO partners in missions around the globe. It has proven to be a mature, capable and interoperable aircraft and that is why we are moving to the finalization phase of this procurement," Anand, speaking alongside Tassi, told reporters.
"Canada has one of the greatest air spaces in the world and we have to make sure that our next fleet of fighter jets is flexible, agile and able to meet a wide spectrum of threats," she said.
Top bidder Lockheed Martin beat out Saab’s Gripen, after Boeing’s Superhornet was excluded from the running, and an Airbus-led consortium and France’s Dassault Aviation withdrew their Typhoon and Rafale fighters, respectively, from the competition.
Tassi said negotiations with Lockheed Martin would now proceed to finalize the contract within the next seven months. She said she expects "delivery of the aircraft as early as 2025."
Defense sources had long bet on Lockheed Martin, given Canada belongs to the consortium that developed the F-35 jet and the fact the plane is the military’s first choice.
Canada spent two decades helping to develop the stealth fighter with the U.S. and its allies, but Trudeau when he swept to power in 2015 canceled a previous contract to buy the F-35, calling it too expensive.
"We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Canadian industry to deliver and sustain the F-35 for the Royal Canadian Air Force," Lockheed Martin Canada Chief Executive Lorraine Ben said in a statement.
The investment in the military, according to a government statement on Monday, will be the most significant in more than 30 years.
The new aircraft’s central role will be to patrol North American air space with the U.S. Air Force under NORAD.