A F-35 jet is shown at the International Aerospace Exhibition in Schoenefeld, near Berlin on June 5, 2024.RALF HIRSCHBERGER/AFP/Getty Images
Lockheed Martin, the U.S. defence giant that builds the F-35 fighter jet, has offered to create more jobs in Canada if Ottawa buys all of the jets it said it would when the contract was announced in 2023, a source says.
Canada agreed to spend $19-billion to buy 88 warplanes but has a legal funding commitment for only 16, the first of which is due to arrive in 2026. It does not have to purchase the remaining 72.
A senior government source with direct knowledge of the F-35 purchase program told The Globe and Mail that it’s not just about the purchase price, but also about jobs. Lockheed Martin has approached Ottawa on the offer of more jobs in Canada if we purchase all the jets, the source said.
The Globe is not identifying the source, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the F-35 purchase. The source did not say how many jobs were under discussion.
The Canadian office of Lockheed Martin had no immediate comment. A spokesperson said that the F-35 has, in effect, already created jobs in Canada because some 110 suppliers have played a role in the F-35’s global supply chain since the project was launched more than two decades ago.
Prime Minister Mark Carney threw the F-35 contract into doubt late last week, when he ordered a review of the purchase agreement. After U.S. President Donald Trump launched a tariff war against Canada and other countries, there has been popular support among Canadians to buy a rival aircraft, coupled with concerns that the planes could be denied crucial software upgrades if Mr. Trump chose to punish Canada in some way.
The source said Ottawa now has some leverage over Lockheed Martin since it is not obliged to buy all 88 aircraft. The second option is the JS 39 Gripen fighter jet build by Saab of Sweden. The Gripen was the runner-up in the competition to replace Canada’s aging fleet of CF-18s. The winner, the F-35, was announced in early 2023.
Saab declined to comment on speculation that it is set to renew its bid to supply Canada with the jets. In making its pitch years ago, Saab called the Gripen a “made-in-Canada fighter” and said the program would create 6,000 jobs across the country over the expected 40-year lifespan of the program.
Brazil has been making the Gripen under licence since 2023, showing that Saab is still open to non-Swedish production. The Gripen is being made at an assembly plant owned by Embraer, the Brazilian aerospace company that makes small passenger jets.
Lockheed Martin did not offer to build the F-35 in Canada, or specifically guarantee Canadian jobs. Instead, it announced a competitive process where the F-35 “partner nations” could bid on supplying components to the jet or offer research and development programs.
“Canada has been a strong partner on the program since 2002 and a critical part of the supply chain prior to procurement of aircraft,” Lockheed Martin said in a statement.
Portugal last week said it was also reconsidering a plan to buy F-35s because of Mr. Trump’s belligerent comments about trade with Europe and questions about his commitment to NATO.
Outgoing Portuguese Defence Minister Nuno Melo told local media that “We cannot ignore the geopolitical environment in our choices. The recent position of the United States, in the context of NATO … must make us think about the best options, because the predictability of our allies is a greater asset to take into account.”