Let's talk about Canada and Sweden beating the US out of billions.... - Belle of the Ranch

[TexasTowelie]

Well, howdy there Internet people. It's Belle again. So, today we're going to talk about Canada and Sweden beating the US out of billions.

First, we need a little bit of backstory and an explanation. In modern militaries, the Airborne Warning and Control System or AWACS is the backbone of air power. It's normally a large plane that looks like a cargo plane with a dish on top. They can track incoming aircraft and the planes avoid many of the limitations of ground-based radar. They're important and it's not a purchasing decision taken lightly.

For more than 40 years, one company dominated the field, Boeing. And that legacy was set to continue. As recently as 2023, Boeing was set to be the manufacturer of NATO's next generation of AWACS. Boeing's E7A wedge tail was a sure thing. But that was under Biden. That was before Trump caused a massive rift in the NATO alliance. That was before he indicated he might attack NATO allies. Then the US decided to cut Boeing's wedge tail from the spending plan in June of 2025. That was probably the last straw. It didn't help that the CEO of Saab was out there basically saying, "Y'all rushed to purchase this thing. Have you heard about our Global Eye? It's kind of awesome."

Countries started scrapping their purchase plans for Boeing's plane. The Dutch defense minister made no secret that it was because of Trump's rhetoric and a new desire to invest in European defense industries. That's something that didn't matter as much when the US was a reliable ally.

At time of recording, it hasn't been publicly announced, but multiple outlets have confirmed that NATO's support and procurement agency has made the selection. The Global Eye is going to be the new platform. It's basically Saab's radar and electronics thrown into a bombardier global. So, it's Swedish tech in a Canadian plane. Even setting aside the geopolitical implications of the US losing out as the provider, we're not talking about a small chunk of change the US lost out on because of Trump's rhetoric and trade policies. We're talking about more than $600 million per unit.

Trump costs the US billions. Just the first run looks to be close to $6 billion, and that's just for the planes. That doesn't include all of the additional money for sustainment, training, and everything else.

This is going to be a huge boost to both Canadian and European defense contractors. It's taking the rhetoric about building out the defense industries there and making it concrete. Defense contractors there now know, not think, know they can get the big contracts.

You don't need the advanced sensors on an AWACS to see there's going to be more of this incoming. I'm sure this won't bother Trump at all right before Canada and the US start talking about trade deals again.

Anyway, it's just a thought. Y'all have a good day.