Spain only really needs F-35B for the Juan Carlos I. There is zero chance of anyone outside of the USN purchasing F-35C. The Spanish A330 MRTT on order will have probe and drogue AND Boom....Reportedly they've cooled significantly on F-35 in recent years, hence why I've left a 'Halcon III' order in as a possibility, with a split between Typhoon and F-35B, which IMHO is far more likely than a joint F-35A and F-35B order.
No Meteors sent to Ukraine as no compatible aircraft at present. And realistically even if some Gripen C were sent they can't actually get the full benefit of Meteor anyway with their kinematics and radar...
Typhoon Tranche 1 to Ukraine would be a medium term thing. The majority of the c120 Tranche 1 only come available as replaced by new production in Germany, Spain and Italy (and Austria post 2030 if they actually replace with F-35A) over the next few years. The intention would be to give Ukraine a viable, cheap/free A2A platform that will provide some deterrence out to 2050 (because F-16 isn't going to or MiG-29/SU-27). And given todays events....one that isn't dependent on the US....there isn't any other Western fighter available in numbers, in a reasonable timeframe, with decent service life left, with the inherent capability/support and training available locally and crucially.... free/cheap in the next 20 years...because Ukraine, or what remains of it now, will effectively be bankrupt (unless someone wants to pony up the funds for new build F-35, Typhoon LTE, Rafale F5 or Gripen E....which isn't going to happen for a variety of reasons...).
The sensible upgrade would be the Leonardo AESA antenna on the existing CAPTOR-M backend which has been proposed in the past. It's not as capable as even ECRS Mk.0 but would give the Tranche 1's a lot more capability at a reasonable price. You could integrate JDAM, SDB1 comparatively easily alongside Paveway II and Litening (because the German's have already done it). Add in the existing Asraam, IRIS-T, Sidewinder, LaGS and Amraam and it would do....no Meteor though, and any cruise missile like Storm Shadow would be a very basic integration, which isn't a disaster to be honest.
