The decision by Finland at the back end of 2021 to pin its future combat air aspirations on the Lockheed Martin F-35A stealth fighter represented another European win for the company and its premier fast-jet platform, as NATO members, non-NATO allies and putativeiy neutral countries align with what is becoming the de-facto 'Western' standard. The conclusion of Helsinki's HX Programme, which began in 2018 with the winner finally announced on December 10, 2021, ended the hopes of Lockheed's industrial rivals such as Sweden's Saab, US-based competitor Boeing, France's Dassault Aviation, and the pan European (but UK-led for the HX Programme) Eurofighter alliance, having respectively put forward their Gripen E/F (along with the GlobalEye airborne early warning platform), F/A-18 Super Hornet (and electronic warfare Growler variant), Rafale, and Eurofighter platforms. Finland's evaluation of the offers was completed in Q3 2021.
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