Gripen XL

Looking at the “successor to eurocanard” thread I thought of an idea that I think is worth its own thread, and that is an extended version of the Gripen in the same way that the F-16 XL was extended. First of all I think Saab made a major mistake in making a canard jet with relatively high wing loading compared to that of the Rafale and Eurofighter which opted for a large delta wing configuration. With a jet with a 1 to 1 thrust to weight ratio like the F-16 you can get away with high wing loading and still retain maneuverability in all flight regimes. But with thrust to weight ratios well below unity this leaves lack luster maneuvering characteristics for the Gripen. Also the Gripen is more suseptable to deep stalls because the center of lift is near to the center of gravity of the aircraft, whereas the Rafale and Eurofighter have better weathervaneing ability with their large delta wings. The other problem with the Gripen is its short range, much more of a selling point these days when nations want long range strike and patrol capabilities. The solution is to make a stretched version of the Gripen much the same way as a stretched version of the F-16 was made with the F-16 XL. This will improve the Gripen in all areas: dogfighting, range, load carrying, stall characteristics.