Switzerland: 10 criteria to evaluate what would be the best Swiss fighter plane

While the Swiss authorities evaluate the performances and specificities of the devices competing for the replacement of its F5 and F18, each manufacturer, supported by their country of origin, tries to highlight the strengths of its offer. In this maelstrom of information, it is sometimes difficult to sort things out and objectively determine which aircraft would best correspond to the needs of the Swiss air forces for the next 40 years. To do this, we will evaluate each device and each related offer, using an analysis grid of 10 objective criteria, addressing the operational, technical and political aspects of each offer. We will therefore study the Swedish offer from SAAB with the JAS 39 E/F Gripen, The Dassault Rafale French F4, the Typhoon from Eurofighter, the Boeing A/F 18 Super Hornet and the Lockheed-Martin F35A.

1- Maneuverability of the device

Switzerland is a very specific theater for exercising air superiority, and possible air support. Anyone who has ever had the chance to see the dexterity of the Swiss Mirage III or F5 pilots flying in their mountains will be convinced of this. Therefore, maneuverability is an essential factor for a combat aircraft in Switzerland, the aircraft having to operate in a very mountainous and very complex environment, often near peaks. In this area, two devices are characterized by their ability to maneuver at low and medium altitude, close to the ground, see the Gripen and the Rafale, obtaining a score of 5. The Typhoon being initially designed for high altitude, its maneuverability at low and medium altitude is lower, like the F18, which does not benefit from the aeronautical design of the Eurocarnard, which is more maneuverable, obtains a score of 4. The F35 is not an airplane maneuvering, it was not designed for this, and its performance in this area is lower than that of an F16. He is credited with a rating of 2.

2- Rusticity

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