Spain withdraws earlier stated interest in F-35
Spain has said that it is now no longer interested in acquiring either the F-35A or F-35B (pictured), focusing instead on the Eurofighter and FCAS only. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)
Spain has withdrawn its previously stated interest in acquiring the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II as a potential partial replacement for its current Boeing EF-18 Hornet and McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II aircraft.
The Spanish Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed to Janes on 6 August that its future combat aircraft procurement plans are now focused on the Eurofighter and New Generation Fighter (NGF) being developed under the wider Future Combat Air System (FCAS)/Système de Combat Aérien du Futur (SCAF) programme with France and Germany.
According to the MoD, “The Spanish option involves the current Eurofighter and the FCAS in the future”, following an earlier report in the Spanish El País newspaper in which a government minister said the country's defence procurement plans would be focused on European equipment.
The MoD first told Janes in November 2021 that it had requested information on both the conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) F-35A and short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) F-35B at the same time as requesting information on the enhanced Long-Term Evolution (LTE) version of the Eurofighter.
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