LokeBAE owned 37.5% of SAAB when the Gripen was being designed. I clearly remember my undergraduate colleagues at the time doing a placement in the Gripen office.
The first Gripen was rolled out on 26 April 1987, marking Saab’s 50th anniversary.[27] Originally planned to fly in 1987,[19] the first flight was delayed by 18 months due to issues with the flight control system. On 9 December 1988, the first prototype (serial number 39-1) took its 51-minute maiden flight with pilot Stig Holmström at the controls.[18][28]
The first order included an option for another 110, which was exercised in June 1992. Batch II consisted of 96 one-seat JAS 39As and 14 two-seat JAS 39Bs.[31][32] The JAS 39B variant is 66*cm (26*in) longer than the JAS 39A to accommodate a second seat, which also necessitated the deletion of the cannon and a reduced internal fuel capacity.[33] By April 1994, five prototypes and two series-production Gripens had been completed; but a beyond-visual-range missile (BVR) had not yet been selected.[34] A third batch was ordered in June 1997, composed of 50 upgraded single-seat JAS 39Cs and 14 JAS 39D two-seaters,[33] known as ‘Turbo Gripen’, with NATO compatibility for exports
During the 1995 Paris Air Show, Saab Military Aircraft and British Aerospace (BAe, now BAE Systems) announced the formation the joint-venture company Saab-BAe Gripen AB with the goal of adapting, manufacturing, marketing and supporting Gripen worldwide.[33][37] The deal involved the conversion of the A and B series aircraft to the “export” C and D series, which developed the Gripen for compatibility with NATO standards.[38] This cooperation was extended in 2001 with the formation of Gripen International to promote export sales.[39] In December 2004, Saab and BAE Systems announced that BAE was to sell a large portion of its stake in Saab, and that Saab would take full responsibility for marketing and export orders of the Gripen.[40] In June 2011, Saab announced that an internal investigation revealed evidence of acts of corruption by BAE Systems, including money laundering, in South Africa, one of the Gripen’s customers.[41]
So the original Gripen was developed before BAE joined.
I don’t know how much involved BAE was with the incremental development of Gripen C?
LokePhilippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-American outbursts have made US businesses in the country increasingly worried about their future. For Swedish companies, the outlook seems quite different.
In early November, a business delegation led by Sweden’s Minister of Enterprise and Innovation Mikael Damberg will arrive to coincide with the opening of the country’s new embassy in the capital Manila.
At the same time, defence contractor Saab Group is opening a new office in Manila and is reportedly in pole position to secure a deal to sell its JAS 39 Gripen fighter aircraft to the Philippine Air Force.
Full story: http://www.atimes.com/article/us-companies-fret-philippines-swedes-moving/
LokeUntil an official confirmation by the Indian MOD, all this story is only a rumors feeded by SAAB and LM.
Perhaps just a rumor — on the other hand the Livefist blog (and related tweet) are amongst the most reliable in India.
LokeBecause GPS receivers could be made to (if not already designed to) filter out signals that come from anywhere except up… you know, where the GPS satellites are.
What if the tower is high, and the cruise missile is flying low 🙂
Perhaps this is something else, e.g. a system to detect and track stealthy objects.
LokeShiv Aroor (running the Livefist blog) claims in a tweet that it has been confirmed that only single-engine fighters will be considered:
https://twitter.com/livefist/status/788968399715958784
but no reference to which reports confirm this!?
LokeAren’t you on the process to buy high end 155 mm self propelled guns?
Yes, and?
There will kr 0,00006 guns per square km land… (24 guns in total).
LokeThis was spotted just off Norway. There’s nothing you can do about it. but it wouldn’t come to this if peaceful relations were sought
Trolling or just being sarcastic?
LokeThey are forces in which no major purchases are made before 1982. Americans, Israelis, Italians and Spaniards offered equipment on several occasions. Brazilians now are looking to sell 24 aircraft Tucano combat.
At the same time, the government is studying the joint manufacturing of Embraer aircraft Gripen, the Swedish company Saab, without British components.
Google translated from: http://www.eldia.com/el-pais/revelan-que-argentina-hizo-este-ano-pruebas-con-misiles-173477
This is surprising to me; are they still considering Gripen without British components!?
Of course it is possible (e.g. the radar can be replaced by one from Israel or France) however the cost will probably go up quite a lot.
LokeOld news but not posted in this thread, so:
LONDON, July 13 (UPI) — Raytheon and Kongsberg are finalizing plans to assemble, integrate and test the Naval Strike Missile in the United States, Raytheon announced Wednesday.
The companies also plan to produce the missile’s launchers in the United States, Raytheon said in a statement.
August 16, 2016 3:02 PM
LOUISVILLE, KY. – Raytheon is set to build launchers for the Kongsberg Naval Strike Missile at its facility where it constructs the SeaRAM and Phalanx close-in weapon systems, company officials told USNI News on Tuesday.
The NSM is one of three expected weapons to compete for the over the horizon missile program for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) and follow-on frigate program as well as the Navy’s Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare*(OASuW) Increment 2.
https://news.usni.org/2016/08/16/raytheon-manufacture-naval-strike-missile-launchers-kentucky
Lokeit doesn’t make sense for norway.
to counter the thread of Russia invading them, they give up their land and some level of sovereignty to the US military?it is better Norway makes peace with Russia. It is historically within Russia’s field and should really give up some of its non historic territory back to Russia.
Many Norwegians are quite fond of Russia and probably wouldnt even mind being a part of it. but that is unlikely to happen.
I think it is better RUssia makes peace with Norway. Russia should give up some of its non historic territories back to Norway (and Sweden and Finland and Japan and a few other countries).
On the one hand I welcome our close friends and allies the Americans; on the other hand it is a pity that we are not able to defend our country by ourselves anymore. The Norwegian army has been reduced to almost nothing. And probably due to a combination of huge investments in the F-35 and low oil prices the Norwegian government is dragging the feets when it comes to upgrading the army.
LokeI am surprised how much information on the F-35 is available.
In the “good old days” a lot of such information was kept secret.
LokeRepresentatives of Brazil and Sweden governments approved on Tuesday, 18, the first work plan detailing the technology transfer in the Gripen project. For him, Brazil will buy 36 Swedish-made fighter jets and with them, will have access to knowledge in areas such as weapons technology and engineering propulsion.
“The idea is that in the future we develop not only military aircraft, but also civilians,” said the report the Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Services Fernando Furlan. “We manufacture here, if not all, of any phase of the turbines. “
The Swedes, in turn, are interested in partnerships in other areas besides the manufacture of aircraft. The fields of interest range from mining to sustainable smart cities, through cutting-edge industry. “The opportunities in the future are in high-tech manufacturing,” said Deputy Swedish Minister for European and Trade Union Affairs, Oscar Stenström. “It is the only means by which Brazil and Sweden will compete in the global market. “
He added that Sweden is satisfied with the progress of the Gripen project, and expects a “long and fruitful partnership.”
On Wednesday, the Swedish part of a global mining event that takes place in Rio de Janeiro. He informed that digitization is a trend in this activity and that his country has equipment suppliers such. There are also machines that operate with lower power consumption.
The documents signed yesterday begin to detail how it will give the partnership in the Gripen project. “Our main gain is to have access to technology that does not dominate,” said Furlan. It is already certain, for example, that Brazil and Sweden will work together to develop a game with two seats, one for the pilot and one for the browser. “In the future, we will be able to produce a fifth-generation fighter.” The technology, which in the early stages will be for military aircraft, can then be used in the manufacture of civil aircraft.
Google translated from: http://istoe.com.br/parceria-brasil-suecia-deve-ir-alem-de-cacas-gripen-e-pode-envolver-aviacao-civil/
LokeAbout winning in the sky, the IAF has over 250 Su-30MKIs and now will have 36 Rafales with Meteors. These are going to face off against JF-17s and F-16 Block 52s if at all they are ever to go to war with Pakistan. I know who I would back in such a scenario. Against the J-10s and J-11s and Su-30MKKs and so on, the Gripen E doesn’t bring that much more to the table than what a Su-30MKI with the BARS or Rafale with RBE2 AESA does.
I thought the big elephant in the room was China? Really, you should be going for the F-35… China is rapidly improving her capabilities and by the time you got your Rafale, Tejas and “single-engine” fighter (be it F-16 or Gripen E) China will have moved on the 5. gen quite some time ago. If you make a decision next year, followed by 2 years of negotiations (being extremely optimistic) it would probably take another 4-6 years before a new production line is up and running, so we are talking about starting building those fighters 6-8 years from now.
Ideally speaking, the IAF should simply get another 36-40 Rafales off the shelf and call it a day. But that isn’t likely to happen and so this MII tender. But it isn’t like the sole purpose of this new MII tender will be a very capable air to air performer, but rather a versatile jet with a good payload and range. A large arsenal of cheap bombs and standoff weapons that have been integrated already is a big plus.
And an AESA equipped F-16 with the newest AMRAAM variant will be a handful in the air. I don’t think anyone will dispute that.
One could also say “Ideally speaking the IAF should get another 90- 160 Rafale…”, because then they would reach the numbers they talked about for the MMRCA. (126 with an option to go up to 200).
Or one could say “ideally speaking the IAF should get 100 F-35”.
However none of those dream scenarios will come true. I guess you are stuck with either F-16 or Gripen as the “single-engine” fighter to complement the Su-30s, Rafales, Mirage 2000, Tejas, etc.
LokeF-16 akin to block 60 and Sufa weighs close to 9 tons empty (according to F-16.net) and has mtow of some 20 tons. It carries 7,8 tons of fuel (with 370 gallon tanks) or 9,2 tons with 600 gallon tanks.
Ferry range figures are not available for CFT or 600 gal tank versions. USAF f16 weighing empty at 8,2 tons with total of 6,5 tons of fuel has ferry range of 3500 km. Heavier block60 would have less, but that’s why modern variants of F16 overcompensate that with additional fuel. Linear addition of range as function of extra fuel would yield perhaps unrealistic 4300 to 4900 km ferry range. In reality, that is bound to be less but still a figure of around 4000-4500 km is highly plausible. LM has estimated 24% range increase for one specific mission if 600 gal tanks are used over 370 gal tanks, and 37% range increase if on top of said tanks CFTs are used as well. While these may involve specific situations, said 4000-4500 km seems highly attainable.
F-16, however, can carry all that fuel and still have some 1,8 tons available for weapons, enough for a half decent air to ground load. Air to ground loadouts suit a larger plane better and such a plane will lose less range when hauling the same loadout.
No doubt F-16 can carry more, and for longer than the Gripen. So if India is looking for a long-range strike fighter then F-16 may be a better fit.
However if they are looking for a “Mig-21 replacement” then Gripen E may be a good fit?
LokeBrazil is willing to discuss terms of a possible partnership or Brazilian participation in the Gripen project including technology transfer forecast. The Brazilian government bought 36 aircraft for $ 4.6 billion. The development of the aircraft will have a team of 350 Brazilians in Sweden until 2022 and should generate about $ 9 billion. The last 15 will be manufactured in Brazil. There is still the possibility of developing a naval version of door-aviões.
Google translated from: http://oglobo.globo.com/economia/brasil-quer-vender-aviao-frango-para-india-20299673
What some people here tend to forget is that Gripen E/F is not a Swedish project anymore; it is a Brazilian/Swedish project. Brazil is not a customer, they are a partner.
Also people should keep in mind that Brazil and India are both BRICS countries, and both are interested in strengthening their ties.
Thus the “political muscle” supporting Gripen in India is much more than what’s provided by Sweden alone.
(This does not mean that Gripen will win, but it may indicate that the chances of winning against the F-16 may be larger than what some may think).
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