Finland to buy 64 F-35 fighter jets worth $12.5B
by Abraham Mahshie, Defense Reporter
| October 12, 2020 04:41 PM
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Finland, a non-NATO ally, has been cleared to purchase $12.5 billion in F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, boosting the Nordic country on the Russian front line.
Under the thumb of Moscow for decades and sharing a border with Russia, the Scandinavian country is increasing its air firepower with the purchase approved Friday.
The sale to Finland includes 64 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters with air-to-air missiles and air-to-ground precision-guided munitions, 66 Pratt & Whitney F-135 engines, and hundreds of missiles. The foreign military sale was approved by the State Department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency.
Defense contractors Lockheed Martin, Pratt & Whitney, Boeing, and Raytheon are involved in the proposed sale to replace Finland’s aging F/A-18s and upgrade air-to-air and air-to-ground defense capabilities.
While boosting the United States's national security by strengthening Finland's Air Force, a press release indicated that the proposed sale will not alter the military balance in the region.
"It is vital to the U.S. national interest to assist Finland in developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability,” the release read. “The proposed sale of F-35s and associated missiles and munitions will provide Finland with a credible defense capability to deter aggression in the region.”
