Switzerland has reduced its F-35A order to about 30 aircraft from the originally planned 36, while the first deliveries remain scheduled for mid-2027, in a move that sharpens the debate over when to retire the F-5 Tiger and F/A-18 Hornet fleets. The Federal Council said it will not seek the extra 1.1 billion Swiss francs needed to keep the full buy, and instead asked parliament for 394 million francs to cover inflation and raw-material costs.
The revised plan keeps the original 6 billion franc budget ceiling in place. Armasuisse says Swiss F-35As will be delivered in Block 4 configuration, with aircraft produced first in Fort Worth and later at Cameri from mid-2028. The wider air-defence package is also under strain, with Patriot deliveries now expected to slip by four to five years after US production capacity was redirected to Ukraine.