The Multibillion-Dollar Bill Behind South America’s Fighter Race

Defense

Colombia’s Gripen order runs to roughly $3.6 billion, Peru’s fighter deal to $3.5 billion, and Brazil’s program past $5 billion. As South America replaces its aging warplanes all at once, the harder question is not which jet, but the fighter-jet cost each government can carry.

Most of the region’s air forces still fly jets from the nineteen-seventies and eighties. As those fleets age out together, a handful of costly, long-term decisions are redrawing the military map of the continent.

What the region’s new fighters actually cost

On the Gripen side, Brazil is the anchor. It chose the Swedish jet years ago, named it the F-39, and now assembles it at home, becoming the first country to build the type outside Sweden.

Colombia joined that camp in 2025, signing for the Gripen E in a deal worth roughly $3.6 billion. That gave the Swedish maker two committed operators and the start of a regional cluster around Brazilian production.

The sums involved are large enough to shape budgets for years. Peru’s program alone runs into the billions, on the order of $3bn to $4bn, and Colombia’s is of a similar scale.

These are among the biggest single purchases either government will make this decade. The F-16 camp, meanwhile, has gained ground of its own.

Peru, where the Gripen had been the early favorite, reversed course and chose Lockheed Martin’s F-16 Block 70. Argentina, for its part, has been fielding secondhand F-16 aircraft bought from Denmark.

Chile sits a little apart from the two-camp story. It already flies older F-16 variants and has focused on joint exercises and fleet readiness rather than a fresh headline purchase, but it stays within the American orbit for now.

Why the choice is about more than planes

Each purchase carries a diplomatic weight beyond its price. Buying American ties a country more tightly to Washington’s supply chains, training and political expectations, while the Gripen leans less heavily on the United States.

The Swedish pitch has long rested on cost and technology transfer. The Gripen is cheaper to run than its rivals and can fly from rougher airstrips, and Saab has offered to share production and know-how rather than just ship finished jets.

Yet the American hand reaches even into the Swedish option. The Gripen uses an engine of American design, and reported US export controls over a key part have shadowed Colombia’s order, a reminder of how much sway Washington keeps.

Politics inside each country matters as much as the pitch from abroad. Peru’s switch to the F-16 came amid collapsing governments and heavy American pressure, showing how a technical contest can be settled by circumstance rather than merit.

What it means for the region

The timing is not accidental. The United States has been pressing harder for influence across the hemisphere, and defense buying has become one of the clearest arenas for that contest.

There is a practical cost to fragmentation, too. When neighbors fly different aircraft, joint training and shared logistics get harder and dearer, which is partly why multinational exercises have grown in importance.

For an investor or policy reader, the split is worth watching as a proxy. It tracks which way the region’s governments lean between Washington and a more mixed set of partners, one multibillion-dollar decision at a time.

None of this points to an arms race. Budgets stay tight and most of these buys are modest replacements, but the pattern of who sells to whom is a quiet map of alignment worth keeping in view.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which South America fighter jets are countries choosing?

Brazil and Colombia have chosen the Swedish Saab Gripen E, which Brazil builds at home as the F-39. Peru selected the American F-16 Block 70, and Argentina is fielding secondhand F-16s bought from Denmark.

Why does the choice matter geopolitically?

Buying American deepens ties to US supply chains, training and political expectations, while the Gripen offers a less dependent route. The decisions signal which way each government leans between Washington and a broader set of partners.

What is the catch with the Gripen?

Although it is a Swedish jet, the Gripen uses an engine of American design. Reported US export controls over a key part have shadowed Colombia’s order, showing that Washington keeps leverage even over the non-American option.

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