Sweden says Thailand set to seal next Saab JAS 39 Gripen deal
Still, a Swedish official told Breaking Defense that any deal won't be finalized until the ink is dry during an expected signing ceremony.
Still, a Swedish official told Breaking Defense that any deal won't be finalized until the ink is dry during an expected signing ceremony.
Aaron Mehta and Tim Martin of Breaking Defense walk through their takeaways for Dassault, Embraer, Saab and Boeing at the end of the Paris Air Show.
Michigan’s defense ecosystem and expertise makes it a special asset for production.
The soon to be signed sale will enable Paris to replace retiring Boeing E3-F Sentry spy planes, and marks Saab’s second GlobalEye export behind the United Arab Emirates.
Following a decision by Swedish political leadership in 2019 to improve the country’s military capabilities, weapons procurement has surged, said Brig. Gen. Lars Helmrich.
The company also announced the launch of a new launched effect known as the Precision Exportable Launched Effect, or Pele.
The program developed to "explore how trustworthy AI can be used against future threats," is fully funded by the Swedish Defence Material Administration.
For Thailand, the new Gripens will be equipped with the Raven ES-05 Active Electronically Scanned Array radar, Infra-Red Search and Track systems and datalinks.
American, South Korean, French and Swedish plane-makers all appear to be courting Lima, while political instability complicates matters further.
“This [Arexis] is part of [the] Eurofighter program and Germany is now funding it, but any other Eurofighter customer, of course, could benefit from having it on board," Mikael Corp, sales director of fighter electronic warfare at Saab, told Breaking Defense.
A request for information released by the service raises the possibility of integrating new upgrades on a platform “equivalent” to the E-7, though it’s not clear what that could be.
The new offer, valued at 16.65 billion CZK ($732 million), will enable Prague to continue to operate 12 Gripen aircraft out to 2035 — two less than its existing fleet of 14 units — split between 10 single seat and two, two-seat platforms.
"We should sort of understand that we need to do more in Europe, nation by nation, of course, but also as part of the alliance, being a strong pillar in NATO" said Saab CEO Micael Johansson.
Ideally, a long-term agreement would be struck, Saab CEO Micael Johansson told Breaking Defense, leading to a first squadron of C/D standard aircraft being delivered to Kyiv “sooner rather than later."
The manufacturer has taken the unconventional step of pre-empting Giraffe 1X demand by starting production of the 3D Active Electronically Scanned Array radar on the new line without securing additional UK or export orders.