Czech’s struggle to afford Gripen lease extension
February 5, 2025
Jana Černochová, has served as the Minister of Defence in the Cabinet of Petr Fiala since December 2021. She has said that she would like to see a Gripen lease extension, but that the government has thus far been unable to fit an extension within its current budget, it was reported on 4 February 2025. She reportedly hopes to conclude an extension of the Gripen lease by the autumn elections, but this will depend on the results of ongoing negotiations.
The Czech defence budget is under considerable pressure, and even though the Minister is targeting a budget equivalent to 3% of GDP, this is probably less than will be required to meet new NATO goals and commitments, which are due to be discussed at the NATO summit in The Hague in June.
Defense Minister Jana Černochová would like to complete the purchase of Leopard 2A8 tanks for the Czech Army by the end of her mandate (a purchase that has not yet been funded), and needs to solve the Czech Army’s retention crisis.
The Czech Republic government signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) on 29 January 2024, outlining its intention to procure 24 Lockheed Martin F-35As. More recently, on 27 September 2024, Lockheed Martin signed a contract to integrate F-35As into the Czech Republic, covering programme management, logistics, sustainment, and systems engineering services, with all work expected to be completed by September 2027.
On 5 February 2025, the official X account of the Czech Armed Forces ‘tweeted’ that: “We are training on F-35 simulators in the USA! Our project team and pilots are testing the aircraft’s capabilities and potential to develop a training system and modernize our 21st Tactical Air Force Base at Caslav. Why now? Because we must start preparing for the future today. We’re setting everything up for the next generation of fighter pilots.” The Tweet was accompanied by a photo of eight Czech personnel in front of an F-35 training facility, seven of them in flying suits.
Although the Czech Air Force is already beginning its transition to the F-35A, its first aircraft are not expected to arrive until 2031 – four years after the Gripen was originally due to bow out.
In September 2024, the Czech Republic signed a Joint Declaration with Sweden to extend the lease of its existing 14 JAS 39 Gripen aircraft beyond 2027, and it is this extension that is proving hard to achieve.
Our original piece on the Czech Republic’s plan to extend its Gripen lease beyond 2027, posted on 3 September 2024, is at:
Our follow-up on the disagreement over Czech Gripen lease extension terms, posted on
23 December 2024, is at:
