Belgium is set to move forward with its commitment to the F-35 programme, with the new Arizona government indicating that it intends to power forward with the acquisition of the expensive and controversial stealth supersonic fighter jets.
The decision to acquire the American-made fighter jets was first made by the Charles Michel’s government in 2018 to replace Belgium’s ageing F-16 fighters. Belgium currently possesses 45 F-16 fighter jets, of which Belgium has already committed 30 of the older fighter jets to Ukraine from 2026. Belgium therefore has an acute need to accelerate its transition to the newer F-35 platform.
The initial purchase agreement aims to acquire 34 F-35 aircraft, designed by Lockheed Martin, at an estimated total cost of around €3.6 billion. In 2018, then-Minister of Economy Kris Peeters had promised that Belgium’s purchase of the jets would pay for itself in contracts awarded for their maintenance to Belgian aerospace companies.
Ultimately, this gamble did not pay off, with companies pulling in just €700 million by mid-2022, not even 20% of the sticker price. An agreement signed last year promises that the F-35 programme will generate €66 million in economic returns per year, or €2.7 billion over a 40-year-period, still far the cost invested into the fighter jets.
