Gripens bound for Ukraine could be built in Canada: Saab

A replica of a Saab Gripen multirole fighter aircraft is shown at the Cansec annual defence industry trade show in Ottawa on Thursday, May 28, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

OTTAWA — Swedish defence firm Saab says if Ottawa chooses to buy its Gripen E fighter jets, Canada could end up making some of the ones destined for Ukraine’s air force.

Saab says up to 20 of its Gripen jets will be built for Ukraine under a European Union support loan agreement and Sweden will donate 16 older-model Gripens to the war-torn country.

Saab’s deputy CEO Andres Carp tells The Canadian Press that Canada could become a production and export site and could deliver Gripens to Ukraine if the federal government chooses to invest in the product itself.

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal government has been reviewing whether to proceed with a full order of 88 F-35 fighter jets for more than a year now.

Carp says that while Ottawa has not given Saab any timeline for completing that review, the company understands it’s a complex decision.

Carney started the political review of the F-35 procurement in March of last year, not long after U.S. President Donald Trump launched his trade war with Canada.

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press