A JAS 39 Gripen fighter jet in the Hungarian Air Force flies during an airshow in Sanicole, Belgium, in September 2021. Sweden’s Gripen is one of the world’s best fighter jets, but the country’s small size has prevented it from becoming a major air power. (Shutterstock/VanderWolf Images)

European NATO Countries Make Great Aircraft. Why Don’t They Have More of Them?

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Ultimately, European nations are undone by their small populations, limited defense spending, and competing design priorities relative to air giants like the United States and China.

A handful of European NATO nations—chiefly Germany, France, and Sweden—stand out for sharing a similar paradox. All three nations possess the engineering capabilities that one might expect to be associated with a large fighter jet industry, yet both house relatively humble fighter forces. Sweden produces the JAS 39 Gripen, one of the smartest 4.5-generation aircraft ever built; France builds the Dassault Rafale, a similarly cutting-edge fighter jet; and Germany is the lead nation behind the Eurofighter Typhoon, one of the world’s most capable non-stealth fighters. Yet none of these nations resembles the United States, or even........

© The National Interest