HELSINKI — Patria will construct a site in Finland for the assembly of F-35 Block 4 fighter jets, now that the federal government’s Ministerial Finance Committee has approved the Defence Ministry’s land and facilities lease proposal.
The project is linked to the $9.6 billion jet procurement contract reached between Finland’s MOD and the American company Lockheed Martin in February 2022. The deal covers the delivery of 64 F-35s to the Finnish Air Force.
The constructing of the aircraft assembly facility forms a part of the contract’s so-called stage one industrial component. The umbrella project required the signing of a lease for an appropriate assembly plant development site. This was found near the town of Nokia. The location lease was signed in January between the Finnish Defence Forces and Defence Properties Finland, the state organization tasked with managing properties and assets owned by Finland’s defense administration.
Construction work on the engine assembly constructing is slated to start throughout the second half of 2024. Under the terms of the economic deal struck between Finland and Lockheed Martin, engine maintenance at the power in Nokia will proceed throughout all the life cycle of the Air Force’s F-35 fleet.
“Industrial cooperation tied to the F-35 agreement will generate critical maintenance and repair expertise for Finland’s indigenous defense industry. This includes performance areas like reliability of maintenance. The agreement can even create significant know-how in Finland for F-35 engine assembly and testing,” Defence Minister Antti Häkkänen said.
The assembly plant will operate in close collaboration with the regional aircraft hub in Tampere run by Patria’s aviation division. An estimated 100 personnel will work in various assembly roles at the power.
The federal government owns 50.1% of Patria, and the Norwegian company Kongsberg controls the rest. Patria itself owns half of the Norwegian defense contractor Nammo.
The F-35s are set to switch the Air Force’s ageing McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet jets. These planes are scheduled to retire by 2030. The primary batch of the F-35s on order are due for delivery after which deployment to Arctic air bases in Finland’s Lapland region by 2026.
The economic cooperation component of the F-35 acquisition deal is anticipated to be scaled up in stages by 2030. The broadening of the economic agreement may include the production or assembly in Finland of certain parts and systems utilized in the aircraft.
The Air Force has already tested the F-35′s suitability and flexibility to operate in extreme weather conditions, especially in Arctic areas of Finland throughout the country’s long winters that feature limited daylight.
In recent exercises, the service routinely used stretches of “closed highway” in Arctic and sub-Arctic regions as temporary airstrips. The Air Force is currently running such maneuvers as a part of the weeklong Hanki drills within the north of the country, that are to proceed until March 2.
Gerard O’Dwyer is the Scandinavian affairs correspondent for Defense News.