Spain's plans to decommission its F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft could be an opportunity for Ukraine to strengthen its air force. A total of 80 jets are nearing the end of service life, waiting to be replaced by new Eurofighter Typhoon multirole fighters. A new deal on 25 additional Eurofighters potentially frees up to two squadrons of aging yet operable aircraft that could become a powerful reinforcement to Ukraine's air combat capabilities
For context, back in 2022, Madrid ordered 20 Eurofighters from its multinational manufacturer under the Halcon I program. The jets would become the second type of fighter aircraft in the Spanish Air Force, replacing the oldest of F/A-18s. This purchase cost EUR 2.636 billion.
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Now the country's defense ministry is in the final stages of signing a contract for 25 more Eurofighter aircraft in the latest Tranche 4+ version worth about €4 billion. The second order, called Halcon II, has been prepared since 2023 and is currently close to finalizing a firm agreement, meaning that Madrid is unlikely to change its decision to decommission the Hornets.
That said, let's take a closer look at the F/A-18s in question. Spain received these aircraft in two tranches: the first 72 were bought in 1983 and delivered from 1986 to 1990. These were newly built with some components produced in Spain. The jets were distributed among the 12th and 15th Wings (stationed at air bases in Torrejón de Ardoz and Zaragoza, respectively). Seven aircraft have been lost since.
Then, in 1994, Spain ordered an extra 24 Hornets, albeit used ones this time. They began arriving in 1995 and were assigned to the 46th Wing (Las Palmas-Gando Air Base in the Canary Islands). Four have been lost entirely but only about 15 of the remaining ones are still in airworthy condition. They are to be replaced by 20 Eurofighters under the Halcon I program, deliveries starting in 2026.
Worth adding, the Spanish F/A-18 fleet overall has been modernized throughout service. In the 1990s, 46 aircraft were upgraded to the EF-18A+ modification, equivalent to the F/A-18C/D standard. Later in the 2000s, some of the jets were modernized further: known as the EF-18M, the upgrade was deeper than the previous one. Also, the Spanish machines are integrated with German IRIS-T air-to-air missiles and Taurus KEPD-350 land attack cruise missiles.
But as always, the main limitation is time. Here's the schedule for Eurofighters' arrival to replace the Spanish EF-18A+ from the 46th Wing:
- 2026: 3 aircraft,
- 2027: 5 aircraft,
- 2028: 6 aircraft,
- 2029: 4 aircraft,
- 2030: 2 aircraft.
As for the Halcon II program with 25 more Eurofighters ordered, they are to partially phase out the EF-18M aircraft purchased in the 1980s, currently operated by the 12th Wing. The delivery deadlines are yet to be revealed but what is known for sure is that the EF-18M will remain in service until 2035. Consequently, it is likely that the replacements will arrival sometime in the early 2030s.
All in all, despite Spain decommissioning its F/A-18s, it is unlikely that its Air Force will receive adequate quantities of replenishments in the near future to offer the older jets as donations to Ukraine or even put them on sale. That is, unless Madrid revises the terms and deadlines of its rearmament programs; still, those timeframes are very closely tied to Eurofighter's production rates.
As a silver lining, Kyiv should definitely keep an eye on the rearmament of the Spanish Armed Forces and its decommissioned F/A-18 Hornets but betting on them now is unlikely to bring any result in a short-term perspective. Much like the story with Australian F/A-18s: there were supposed to be 50 spare fighters in Australian Air Force inventories, yet only 14 turned out to be serviceable, with a mere 2 years of service life remaining. However, even getting those became problematic in the end.
Read more: Australia Could Give Ukraine Only 14 Serviceable F/A-18 Hornet Jets, These Aircraft Can Last for 2 Years
