Pete Hoekstra has pressed Canada’s fighter decision against the Saab JAS 39 Gripen and the 88 F-35A plan, after Canada rejected the Gripen in 2021 because it found the aircraft fit basic tasks but not full NORAD demands. Canada now has 16 F-35A aircraft under contract, with the first four expected in 2026.
Canada and NORAD
Canada’s 2021 rejection of the Gripen turned on one issue: whether the aircraft could fit NORAD’s operational demands. Canada judged that it could handle basic tasks, but not the full demands of a system built around US-controlled IFF Mode 5, missile defense data links, and classified datalinks tied to US early warning.
That leaves the fighter replacement debate tied to the way Canada carries out air sovereignty patrols and intercepts. Its existing CF-18s already work inside NORAD, while the planned F-35A fleet was selected in 2021 to replace Hornets with a program of record for 88 aircraft.
Saab JAS 39 Gripen
The Gripen still has attributes Canada has acknowledged. It is NATO-compatible with Link 16, NATO weapons, and Western sensors, and Saab says it can make the aircraft NORAD-compliant. Saab has not shown how it would do that in a way the United States would accept.
That gap is why the Gripen remains part of the debate even after Canada chose the F-35A. A fighter can be useful in broader NATO service and still fail the tighter integration requirements that apply inside NORAD, where Canada’s air defense is linked to systems the United States controls.
F-35A order in Canada
The United States is concerned about Canada significantly reducing its planned purchase of 88 F-35A fighter jets, and Hoekstra has tied the aircraft to NORAD’s command-and-control structure. Canada already has 16 F-35A aircraft contracted, which means any reduction would cut into a purchase that was intended to replace its Hornets rather than add another separate fleet.
Canada’s older CF-18s still support the air sovereignty mission, but the long-delayed replacement decision is now centered on how many fighter types Ottawa will operate and whether the next jet can plug into NORAD without workarounds. The first four F-35A aircraft arriving in 2026 will be the next concrete test of that plan.
For Canada, the unanswered issue is not whether the Gripen can fly missions on its own. It is whether Saab can show a NORAD-compliant version that fits US-controlled systems well enough to change the decision Canada already made in 2021.
