The Swiss Federal Office of Defense, armasuisse, recently pre-approved the “RIGI” offset project. This pre-approval enables the US manufacturer Lockheed Martin to begin the transfer of tools, know-how and training with its Swiss industrial partner RUAG, which will enable the final assembly of four F-35A fighter aircraft at RUAG. After final parts assembly, the aircraft will be transferred to the Leonardo operated F-35 production facility in Cameri, Italy, for final acceptance.
In September 2022 armasuisse signed the procurement contract for the purchase of 36 F-35A fighter aircraft from the US manufacturer Lockheed Martin. The aircraft are to be delivered between 2027 and 2030 and will replace the current fleet of F/A-18 Hornets and F-5 Tigers. As part of the contract, Lockheed Martin has undertaken to offset 60 percent of the contract value, which corresponds to around 2.8 billion euros, through offset transactions with companies in Switzerland. Of this, 20 percent must be in connection with the procured F-35A fighter aircraft. https://militaeraktuell.at/bundeswehr-modernisiert-fennek-spaehwagen/
Important knowledge building
The aim of this project is to build up in-depth knowledge in Switzerland that can later be used over the entire life cycle of the F-35A and strengthen Switzerland’s autonomy in the operation and maintenance of the fighter aircraft. Specifically, RUAG will receive know-how, data packages, training and technical support from Lockheed Martin in connection with the final assembly of the F-35A. This direct offset project has an offset value of around 520 million euros. This amount will be invoiced in stages over the entire procurement period once the agreed project milestones have been reached.
Value creation in western Switzerland
RUAG expects to need around 100 employees for the implementation of the project. RUAG has made a commitment to armasuisse to source 40 percent of the personnel required for this offset project from French-speaking Switzerland. RUAG has also promised armasuisse that by 2034, value creation and investments amounting to 20 percent of the offset value of this project – i.e. just over 100 million euros – will be made in French-speaking Switzerland.
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