Finland receives five responses for HX program

Finland has received five responses for their HX fighter replacement program. The RFI was released in April of 2015, requesting information from Boeing, Lockheed, SAAB, Eurofighter, and Dassault. Information was sent on the F-18E/F, F-35, Gripen E, Typhoon, and Rafale.

The counter proposal will be sent back in April, with the final RFP released in 2018, and final selection in 2021. The government could end up going with a mix of forces as well, including UAVs. They currently operate 54 F-18C and 7 F-18D aircraft, which are expected to start being phased out in 2025.

www.flightglobal.com...

a reply to: Zaphod58

Out of these options, the absolutely best cost performance by a large margin will be by SAAB's Gripen E. Less than 20 MUSD per piece, they are a bargain, and most likely SAAB will agree to local production etc, bringing all the good in the world to that deal.

originally posted by: deckdel
Out of these options, the absolutely best cost performance by a large margin will be by SAAB's Gripen E.

Yes definitely the most cost effective, plus Gripen is a neat plane. With the change Finland can invest in UAVs.

It doesn't sound like the Saab are a bad price. They do not need top of the line technology units with all the bells and whistles and extra high price tags in Finland. I question whether any country needs that kind of aircraft. Seems that when they design something new, then the other side finds a way to detect it and counteract it. The price just keeps going up and gobbles up everyone's money and shifts it to the aircraft manufacturer's top brass.

So, do they have to tow that New Destroyer all the way home?

Either the Gripen or Typhoon are probably their best bet. It depends on what they determine their most likely mission is going to be. If it's mostly air to air then the Gripen is a great fit. If it includes an air to ground, the Typhoon fits better. It's got a great air to mud payload and is already certified for pretty much everything the West uses for equipment and weapons.

Can I ask a stupid question like always ?

If the f35 was offered why would the Eurofighter or Gripen be the better option? Considering once problems are ironed out with the F35 it's going to be the best out there .. air to air or air to ground

originally posted by: ThePeaceMaker
Can I ask a stupid question like always ?

If the f35 was offered why would the Eurofighter or Gripen be the better option? Considering once problems are ironed out with the F35 it's going to be the best out there .. air to air or air to ground

The F35 costs over eighty million bucks a piece I think, depending on options. You can get a the Gripen for half that cost with a lot of bells and whistles. That is what I read about about them anyway, Zaphod would know way more than I do on this. I don't know much of the technical differences between these nor have I ever flown a jet. Have flown a Cesna but the top speed of a cesna won't even get a jet off the ground.

I think the cockpit of the jet might be quieter than that little Cesna biwing too.

a reply to: rickymouse

I did consider the cost of the F35 would be the main issue but would it be worth buying them in the long run. Older aircraft need constant work and upgrades. But then again that's why I asked the stupid question lol

a reply to: ThePeaceMaker

Cost and maintenance requirements. The F-35 will be better than any other stealth aircraft for maintenance, but it's still going to need more than a non-stealth aircraft. That makes the overall life cycle costs higher than a lot of smaller nations will want to pay.