Fierce competition gripen and f-35 will the netherlands choose gripen Lockheed F-35 The Lockheed F-35 could be a long-awaited replacement for the F-16, despite the current development saga. Conditional voltages remain, and it is not yet clear whether this new engine variant will be available in Canada. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberals seem to have kept their word on the F-35. It is time that the opposition, which had previously resisted this call to buy troops, put pressure on the Liberals over expensive war-building plans. In 2015, the Liberal Party boldly said, "We will not buy the F-35 stealth fighter." “We will reduce our procurement budget to replace the CF-18 and instead purchase one of the cheapest options that best meets Canadian defense needs,” he added. In the 2015 election, Prime Minister Trudeau declared the Conservatives "harmful to the F-35" and described the aircraft as "out of service" eight months after his appointment as pri...