Swiss narrowly vote for new fighter in national referendum

Switzerland has narrowly voted to procure a new fighter aircraft in a national referendum held on 27 September.

With this narrow approval for the Air2030 fighter procurement, the Swiss Air Force can proceed with efforts to replace its Tiger II and Hornet (pictured) fleets. (Janes/Patrick Allen)

With a relatively high turnout of nearly 60%, the electorate voted for the multi-billion Swiss Franc Air2030 procurement by just 50.1%.

The result effectively overturns the result of the referendum held on the subject in 2014 in which the funding package for the Saab Gripen E was rejected by about 53% of the population. However, while that previous vote became a de facto poll on the Gripen itself, this latest one is on the general procurement to replace the Swiss Air Force’s ageing Northrop F-5E/F Tiger II and Boeing F/A-18 Hornet fleets, with an aircraft type to be decided by the government at a later date.

With this favourable result, the Swiss Air Force is now clear to proceed with the offers made by Germany’s Airbus for the Eurofighter Typhoon, by France for the Dassault Rafale, and by the United States for the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).

The competing companies contacted via the government authorities have been requested to submit the most advantageous offer for Switzerland. The proposal should include prices for 36 and 40 aircraft (including logistics and weapons), as well as other defined industrial aspects of the bid including offsets. The total deal is valued at CHF6 billion (USD6.49 billion).