Danish F-35 Fighters To Perform Tasks Assigned To F-16 Fleet

The Danish government will employ the recently recommended 27 F-35 fighter aircraft to perform the same national and international tasks currently assigned to F-16 fighter aircraft.

The Danish government last Friday published their recommendation that F-35 should replace Denmark’s aging F-16s. The investment will be approximately DKK 20 billion ($3 billion).

There are currently 60 F-16 fighters in service with the Danish armed forces inventory.

“We understand the selection process for the New Fighter Program is still ongoing and the Joint Program Office will continue to provide the Danish Government with the data needed to make an informed decision that is in their country's best interest,” the joint program office said in a statement Thursday.

Lockheed Martin’s F-35A beat Eurofighter and F/A-18F Super Hornet after the Danish Defense ministry evaluated the three aircraft based on an operational period of 30 years for the new fighter aircrafts (2020-2049).

As agreed upon by the parties to the Defence Agreement, the government recommends funding within the Defence Budget at its current level. This will be done primarily by using the currently available funding in the acquisition and logistics budget until 2026, as well as funds made available by already implemented budget measures. The Ministry of Defence will also need to be further optimised.