[Ottawa – December 17, 2025] As the debate over Canada’s next-generation fighter jet continues, Canadians are leaning decisively away from an all-F-35 future.
When asked which option is best for Canada – the Lockheed Martin F-35 or the Saab Gripen – seven in ten Canadians (72 per cent) support incorporating the Gripen into Canada’s fighter fleet, either by switching to the aircraft for all future purchases (43 per cent) or by maintaining a mixed fleet of both Gripens and F-35s (29 per cent). Just one in eight (13 per cent) say Canada should continue with the F-35 as its primary fighter jet.
It is interesting to note that only 12 per cent of respondents were unsure or declined to answer. This finding suggests that Canadians – while not necessarily fluent in all the technical details – are following the issue and forming opinions.
Regionally, residents of Quebec are slightly more likely to favour a mixed-fleet approach. The results also reveal some significant partisan splits. Decisive majorities of Liberal, NDP, Green, and Bloc Québécois supporters favour adding the Gripen to Canada’s fleet, either exclusively or alongside the F-35. Nearly one-third of Conservatives favour sticking with the F-35, though even among Conservatives, a majority support incorporating the Gripen in some form.
The findings present a challenge for the federal government, particularly in light of the recent DND leak suggesting the department sees the F-35 as the superior aircraft. While the survey did not delve into the specific operating capabilities or economic offsets, it is clear that proceeding with an F-35-only plan will be a difficult sell. Whatever the technical merits of the aircraft, Canadians appear far more convinced by Saab’s case than Lockheed Martin’s.
Methodology:
This survey was conducted online using EKOS’ unique research panel, Probit. Our panel offers exhaustive coverage of the Canadian population, random recruitment (in other words, participants are recruited randomly; they do not opt themselves into our panel), and equal probability sampling (each panellist has a non-zero chance of appearing in the sample). All respondents to our panel are recruited by telephone using random digit dialling and are confirmed by live interviewers. Unlike opt-in online panels, Probit supports margin of error estimates.
The field dates for this online survey are November 28-December 10, 2025. In total, a random sample of 2,024 Canadians aged 18 and over responded to the survey. The margin of error associated with the total sample is +/- 2.2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
Please note that the margin of error increases when the results are sub-divided (i.e., error margins for sub-groups such as region, gender, age, and education). All the data have been statistically weighted by age, gender, region, and educational attainment to ensure the sample’s composition reflects that of the actual population of Canada according to Census data.
EKOS follows the CRIC Public Opinion Research Standards and Disclosure Requirements.
The data tables for this survey are available here. The questionnaire is available here.
