In the final-assembly hall for the Saab Gripen fighter jet in the Swedish city of Linkoping, the flags of Saab’s eight customer countries hang above the production line.
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flags → hang → line
A ninth spot holds a white banner reading, in red capital letters, RESERVED.
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spot → hold → letters
Asked whether it was for Canada, a Saab official smiled, shrugged and said nothing.
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official → ask → nothing
Behind the scenes, though, Saab is pulling out all the stops in order to put Canada’s name on the banner.
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Saab → pull → banner
At a recent briefing at Saab’s Linkoping headquarters that included The Globe and Mail, company officials laid out a range of benefits that Canada can expect should it go ahead with a major order for Gripen jets.
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it → include → jets
Saab had already promised a Canadian assembly line for the Gripen but had yet to detail the scope of that promise.
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Saab → promise → promise
The company is proposing to build the fighter jets in Canada from parts to finished aircraft, across a network of roughly 10 prime partners and some 250 suppliers in several provinces.
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company → propose → provinces
Canada would be the first start-to-finish Gripen production line outside Sweden, provided the order is large enough to justify it, Saab officials say.
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officials → start → it
Canada has also been invited by Saab and the Swedish government to join Sweden’s next combat-aircraft program in the future, if the Gripen is selected.
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Gripen → invite → future
It’s not clear at what stage and how detailed talks are between Saab and the federal government.
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talks → ’ → Saab
The company’s promises come amid a growing trade rift between Canada and the U.S., traditionally this country’s largest military supplier.
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promises → come → Canada
And Ottawa is still determining whether to forge ahead with a deal to buy additional U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets.
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Ottawa → determine → jets
Saab’s previously announced partners include Bombardier, CAE, IMP Aerospace & Defence, Arcfield Canada and Cohere.
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partners → announce → Bombardier
Beyond that, a document viewed by The Globe showed plans for half a dozen “Saab innovation hubs” across Canada for R&D, AI, cybersecurity and Arctic innovation.
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document → view → R&D
Saab, which manufactures the JAS 39E Gripen, lost a competitive bid in 2022, when Canada, looking to replace its aging fleet of F-18s, chose U.S.-based Lockheed Martin to buy 88 F-35s.
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Martin → manufacture → F-35s
The deal locked in the purchase of the first 16 planes, which are now in production, but when American tariffs were first introduced a year and a half ago, Prime Minister Mark Carney ordered a review of the contract for the remaining 72 planes.
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Carney → lock → planes
After trade talks collapsed late last month, Canada announced that it would fight U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest levies with countertariffs that are set to take effect next week.
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that → collapse → effect
The F-35 review, and any potential decision on the Gripen, are now caught up in the intensifying trade war, with Washington reportedly demanding that Canada complete the full F-35 buy while calls mount for the federal government to cancel the rest of the order.
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government → catch → order
At the same time, Saab continues its comprehensive multiyear campaign to woo Canada with no assurances that it will bear fruit.
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it → continue → fruit
In an interview, Saab CEO Micael Johansson put the decision in larger terms.
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Johansson → put → terms
“Canada has to decide, [does it] want the sovereign aerospace industry and is that important to them?
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that → have → them
That’s the first decision,” he said.
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he → ’ → ?
“And then if they take that decision, Sweden and Saab is the best choice.”
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Sweden → take → decision
He does not expect the F-35 to disappear; Canada has 16 under contract and has paid long-lead costs on 14 more.
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Canada → expect → 14
“I don’t think Canada will give up F-35 completely,” he said.
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he → think → F-35
“I have no clue how many.”
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I → have → clue
Mr. Johansson insists that Saab is not asking Canada to choose between suppliers.
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Saab → insist → suppliers
“We’re not trying to replace F-35.
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We → try → F-35
That’s a Canadian sovereign decision to go F-35,” he said.
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he → ’ → F-35
And a minute later: “It’s not replacing F-35.
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It → replace → F-35
It’s both.”
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It → ’ → ?
A spokesperson for the office of Industry Ministry Mélanie Joly said in a statement that the minister has been in constant contact with Saab, as well as Lockheed Martin.
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minister → say → Saab
“Her objective remains to create good-paying jobs for Canadians, especially at a time where Canada’s manufacturing sector is dealing with the impacts of the trade war,” said Gabrielle Landry, deputy director of media relations.
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Landry → remain → relations
Mr. Carney vowed last spring that “the days of our military sending 70 cents of every dollar to the United States are over” and has already made moves to diversify its purchases, including Canada’s continuing negotiations with Saab for a separate program: six GlobalEye early-warning aircraft.
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military → vow → program
Mr. Johansson said in the recent interview that a term sheet for the GlobalEye was due to be signed by the end of August.
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sheet → say → August
The Defence Investment Agency, the federal body negotiating the purchase, said in a statement that, “The term sheet has not been signed.”
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sheet → negotiate → statement
The statement added that “Canada has been in constant and productive discussions with Saab regarding the GlobalEye” and that “these negotiations are not related to trade discussions between Canada and the U.S.”
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negotiations → add → Canada
The company’s ambitions, however, are much larger than that, and include the sale of at least 40 Gripen fighters, which Saab says is the number it would need to make building the aircraft in Canada viable.
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building → include → Canada
Saab says it needs a third final-assembly line, in addition to those in Sweden and Brazil, for its Gripen E fighter to meet demand.
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fighter → say → demand
Canada can maintain sovereign control over the aircraft’s military software, Saab says, and keep a classified program office in Montreal under Canadian control.
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Saab → maintain → control
…and 12 more, not listed.
