Breaking Defense: Sales of F-35 fighters to three European countries are facing problems 
Europe faces stiff competition from local combat aircraft manufacturers, Breaking Defense says.
The publication writes that in the coming years Finland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland will make their final decisions on the procurement of new fighters, which are determined not only by financial and technical considerations, but also by politics. “All three countries under consideration have unique characteristics that could pose problems for the fifth generation of American fighters,” the publication says.
The publication writes that the F-35 Lightning II may be expensive for the Czech Republic, which operates the Swedish JAS 39 Gripen fighters. According to Breaking Defense, Prague may continue to use aircraft from the Swedish company Saab AB in the future, which is “less likely to anger Russia.” “The American-made aircraft have one advantage: the recent political downturn in relations between the Czech Republic and Russia,” the newspaper notes.
Non-NATO Finland, which possesses American F/A-18 Hornets, will have a primary choice, according to Breaking Defense, between the JAS 39 Gripen and the F-35 Lightning II. The publication is confident that the new Finnish combat aircraft will potentially have to simultaneously overcome the Russian air defense (air defense) and fight modern Russian fighters. In the first case, the advantage is gained by the inconspicuous F-35 Lightning II, in the second – it is capable of using the Swedish JAS 39 Gripen airbases.
The purchase of an American aircraft by Switzerland is opposed, in particular, as the newspaper writes, residents of French-speaking regions of the country, who are confident in the feasibility of acquiring the European (French) Rafale.
In February, Defense News, referring to the statement of the Deputy Commander of the Swedish Air Force (Air Force) Brigadier General Anders Persson, wrote that the Finnish Air Force should purchase fourth generation fighters JAS 39 Gripen manufactured by the Swedish company Saab AB, because in the event of a war with Russia, “the more vulnerable Finnish air fleet could retreat west to bases in neighboring Sweden, which would be easier to implement when both countries have JAS 39 Gripen at once.” p>
In February 2019, Swedish Air Force Commander Mats Helgesson said that the Swedish JAS 39 Gripen fighter could destroy Russian aircraft of the Su without resorting to stealth technology to reduce signature.