Spain rules out F-35, leaving Navy without Harrier replacement

Spain has effectively ruled out acquiring the Lockheed Martin F-35, suspending talks with the US and opting to prioritize European defense programs. The decision leaves the Spanish Navy without a clear successor to its aging Harrier II jets and curtails the Air and Space Force’s ambitions for fifth-generation combat aircraft. 

According to El País on August 6, 2025, discussions with Washington over the F-35 have been “suspended indefinitely.”  

Despite approving a €10.5 billion defense investment plan in April 2025 and committing to spend 2% of GDP on defense, Madrid has pledged to invest 85% of that budget in European industry, effectively ruling out a US-made fighter. The Spanish Ministry of Defense confirmed the shift in policy. 

Spanish Navy faces fixed-wing aviation gap 

The Spanish Navy’s EAV-8B Harrier II fighters are expected to retire by 2030, and without the STOVL-capable F-35B, there is no replacement to operate from the amphibious assault ship Juan Carlos I. 

In May 2024, Spanish Naval Aviation Commander Captain José Emilio Regodón Gómez emphasized that Spain was committed to keeping its 10 single-seat Harriers operational through the end of the decade, even as the US Marine Corps and Italian Navy retire theirs. However, Gómez warned that sustaining the Harriers past 2030 was unrealistic, citing supply chain challenges. 

To mitigate this risk, the Spanish Navy has secured support contracts through 2028 and is working with Airbus to address unexpected malfunctions and component obsolescence. Still, without a confirmed replacement, the ability to sustain fixed-wing operations beyond 2030 is uncertain. 

A feasibility study, launched in 2025, is exploring the design of a future aircraft carrier equipped with catapults and arresting gear. But such a vessel would not enter service before the mid-2030s, leaving a potential decade-long capability gap. 

Spanish Air Force ambitions also blocked 

The Spanish Air and Space Force had shown interest in the F-35A to replace older EF-18 Hornets. In 2024, the service’s official publication acknowledged the aircraft as a candidate, and in 2025, Chief of Defense Admiral Teodoro Esteban López Calderón described the F-35 as “the difference-maker” for its stealth and sensor fusion capabilities. 

But Madrid’s industrial and political priorities have recurringly closed that door. Back in November 2021, the government denied any F-35A acquisition in favor of its participation alongside France and Germany in the European Future Combat Air System (FCAS). This stance has now been reaffirmed. 

Eurofighter upgrades, carrier study underway 

Spain’s decision reflects a broader European push for defense sovereignty. While 11 NATO allies have already acquired the F-35, Madrid has emphasized domestic industry and trans-European cooperation. Sources cited by El País indicated that acquiring a US-made aircraft would undermine that strategy. 

FCAS remains Spain’s long-term solution for next-generation airpower, though the program has faced delays and intra-European tensions. At the 2025 Paris Air Show, Airbus executives publicly urged Dassault to commit to more equitable collaboration amid persistent workshare disputes. Spain has also warned that continued friction could risk the program’s viability. 

In the meantime, the Air Force may turn to additional Eurofighter Typhoons as a stopgap. But for the Navy, the shelving of the F-35B leaves Juan Carlos I without a viable fixed-wing future, raising the prospect of a strategic void that could last a decade or more. The post Spain rules out F-35, leaving Navy without Harrier replacement appeared first on AeroTime.

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