Known as HX, the program comes three months after a working group delivered a report on possible options for modernizing the country's fleet of fighter jets.
The document stressed the necessity of Finland acquiring a multirole fighter to replace the F/A-18 Hornet fleet by 2030.
The Finnish Ministry of Defense said, in turn, that the current Hornet fleet is due to complete its service life before the end of the 2020s.
The Ministry referred to overall structural fatigue, the weakening of relative capabilities, as well as the availability of the aircraft's systems, spare parts, and software – factors that the Ministry said have prompted the government to launch the procurement program.
Currently under consideration are three European and two US manufacturers, officials said.
As for the fighters, these include the French Dassault Rafael, the Eurofighter, Boeing's Super Hornet, Lockheed Martin's JSF F-35, and the Swedish-made Saab JAS 39 Gripen.
Major General Lauri Puranen, head of the working group, said in June that "all of these are possible and we don't have a favorite."
Finland, a non-NATO member which shares a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia, will reportedly begin its official bidding process in 2017 or 2018, with the final decision expected by 2021.
