By David Ljunggren
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada, locked in a trade war with the United States, is reviewing a C$19-billion ($13.29 billion) contract for 88 American-made F-35 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin but switching planes could be costly and complex, experts say.
Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney was sworn in on Friday and asked Defense Minister Bill Blair to probe whether there are better options.
Canada’s defense ministry says the contract remains in place and Ottawa had made a legal commitment of funds for the first 16 F-35 aircraft.
“We are not cancelling the F-35 contract, but we need to do our homework given the changing environment,” said Blair spokesperson Laurent de Casanove.
He did not give a specific reason. U.S. President Donald Trump has slapped tariffs on Canada and mused about turning it into the 51st state.
Philippe Lagasse, a professor at Ottawa’s Carleton University who specializes in procurement, said buying 16 F-35s and then adding another jet would be expensive.
“We’d also be looking at training pilots on two sets of fighters, which would add more complexity. It can all be done with enough time and money, but both are in short supply,” he said.
Canada, pressured by successive U.S. administrations to increase defense spending, last year pledged billions more for the armed forces and said military expenditures would be closer to the NATO target by 2030.
In a statement, Lockheed Martin said it valued its ties with Canada and referred procurement questions to the government.
The U.S. Defense Department was not immediately available for comment.
Washington this month briefly cut off intelligence sharing and weapons shipments to Ukraine, raising questions about the potential perils of becoming too dependent on U.S. systems.
Portugal could replace its aging American-made F-16 fighters with European jets, rather than F-35s, following Trump’s policy shifts, the defense ministry said on Friday.
FIRST DELIVERY NEXT YEAR
Canada signed the F-35 deal in 2023 and said it expected the first plane to be delivered in 2026.
Ottawa has repeatedly extended the lifespan of its fleet of Boeing CF-18 fighters, some of which are more than 40 years old. They are due to fly to 2032, the point at which all 88 F-35s are supposed to be operational.
In response to a 2017 Boeing complaint that Ottawa was unfairly subsidizing a Canadian-made passenger jet, followed by U.S. tariffs, Canada changed its procurement rules to allow it to look less favorably on a weapons bid from companies that had harmed national interests.
It allowed Boeing to compete to replace the CF-18s but later eliminated the company’s contender.
“If you reread that economic harm clause, you certainly think the current U.S. administration would fit the bill for a party to a procurement that was trying to undermine the Canadian economy,” said David Perry, a defense expert who serves as president of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute think tank.
Canada and other allies are largely dependent on the United States for other support, such as the ability to identify targets, process data and suppress enemy air defenses.
“There are a lot of people rethinking right now, ‘How reliable is access to American military technology going to be?'” said Perry. “All of the options, beyond sticking with our status quo plans, are much less good.”
Saab’s Gripen and the Eurofighter Typhoon, two alternatives, also include U.S. components.
The Canadian review could be moot, since Carney is expected to call an election shortly. Opinion polls show the ruling Liberals tied with the opposition Conservatives.
“If the U.S. administration continues to demonstrate that it is an unreliable partner and ally, then Canada will need to look for other options when it comes to defense purchases,” said Conservative defense spokesperson James Bezan.
($1 = 1.4298 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by David Ljunggren, editing by Caroline Stauffer and Rod Nickel)
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