Indian Navy signs additional contract with IAI for LR-SAM systems

Gripen E to feature next gen EW capability

Both operational testing and evaluation (OTE) pilots with the Swedish Air Force (SwAF) and the company’s own test pilots are highly complimentary of the next-generation Saab Gripen E fighter. “It is a happy coincidence that both the manufacturer and the customer – in this case the SwAF – have almost identical levels of enthusiasm for a new product,” said a Saab representative.

The first Gripen E is undergoing high-speed taxi tests and is expected to make a first flight by the end of June. While the aircraft has several major performance related advancements as part of its design such as the new GE F414G engine and more fuel capacity, the pilots emphasise that one of the aircraft’s major non-kinetic force multipliers is its advanced set of electronic onboard systems.

One of the standout improvements is the Gripen E’s electronic warfare (EW) system, which takes advantage of the aircraft’s fully-digital architecture. This and the more powerful jammer-emitter capability, which is made possible by the integrated set of jamming transmitters, radar warning receivers, and the Selex AESA radar set, make for a more powerful EW profile.

“The configuration of the EW system for the Gripen E allows you to focus the jamming signal in a narrower band, so the signal itself is stronger and directed at an individual specific threat,” said one of the Gripen test pilots. The previous EW system produced a broader frequency band signal, which was designed to counter several threats at once.

The Gripen E’s new EW system uses three types of signal generators to obscure the existence of the aircraft or cause confusion about its location and/or existence so that an adversary cannot choose a proper firing solution. The three types of signal generators are Digital Radio Frequency Memory (DRFM), Doppler, and Noise. DRFM emulates the signal of the radar that makes contact with the aircraft and then mirrors it back so that it appears to the operator on the other side that the radar has encountered nothing.

Sweden may retain Gripen C fighters beyond current 2026 retirement date

Russia completes initial Ka-52K sea trials

Greece retires RF-4 Phantom

PAF Mirage crashes near Jhang

But, there were issues related to disputes over costs. Indonesia refused to accept some of the later F-16IDs on the grounds of cost. The issues were resolved I believe, but those refurbished jets were not cheap.

Hard to believe that brand new Gripen C/Ds were offered for a lower price than used, refurbished F-16s from USA and Portugal! And as expected, the T1 Typhoon offer ranked last. I doubt they’ll ever find buyers for these jets. Something is so off about the price for those 8 used F-16s!

Gripen tops shortlist for Bulgarian fighter deal

On 26 April, the government announced that a selection board had reviewed the three submitted offers, received in mid-March. These were for used Tranche 1-standard Eurofighter Typhoons from Italy, modernised Lockheed Martin F-16s from the USA and Portugal, and new-build Gripens. Bulgaria had asked for the deal to be conducted under a government-to-government agreement.

Defence minister Stephan Yanev says Sweden’s Gripen proposal has been ranked first, followed by the F-16 bid and finally the Typhoon offer, but provides no further details.

Sources in Sofia indicate that the Swedish offer was preferred because its approximately €511 million ($558 million) price tag was less than the F-16 bid, which was valued at around €767 million. The Gripen bid also proposed the delivery of first aircraft within 18 months, supported by a deferred payment scheme to relieve the financial burden on Bulgaria’s defence budget.

..