Old Swiss fighter jet fleet has not yet had its day
Keystone-SDA
The Swiss Air Force’s 30 F/A-18C/D fighter jets will remain in service for longer. This will bridge the existing fleet until the new F-35A fighter jets enter service in the early 2030s.
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The inspection and refurbishment of the aircraft structure was completed at the end of April 2026, the Federal Armaments Office (Armasuisse) said on Monday. With further periodic maintenance, the 30 fighter aircraft should now remain operational.
Parliament decided to extend the service life of the aircraft in the 2017 Armed Forces Dispatch and approved CHF450 million ($575 million) for this purpose. This was implemented by Armasuisse in collaboration with the Swiss Air Force, Ruag and other partners from industry.
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Originally, this amount was earmarked for an extension until 2025, as the jets should have been decommissioned by then. The modernisation was carried out in several phases. The installation of new communication, navigation and identification systems was completed by the end of 2021.
Adapted from German by AI/ts
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