Saab says Finland HX fighter bid was “good offer”

Saab’s CEO has sprung to the defence of the company’s ultimately unsuccessful bid for Finland’s HX Programme, intended to replace the Finnish Air Force’s ageing F/A-18 Hornets, with Helsinki opting for Lockheed Martin’s F-35A stealth fighter over the Gripen E/F platform. The decision, coming in late-2021 that the Gripen would not be selected for the €10bn programme, came as a surprise to some industry watchers, given the scope of Saab’s offering. Instead, Lockheed Martin’s F-35A was selected, with the type