Peter Dölling, managing director of Saab Brazil, said: “With each new delivery of the Gripen to the Brazilian Air Force, we reinforce the maturity of an integrated cycle of production, logistics and operations conducted jointly by Brazil and Sweden. This binational work, supported by the technology transfer programme and by industrial cooperation, demonstrates continuous progress aligned with the purpose of expanding the country’s strategic capabilities.” He noted that the latest delivery reflects steady development across all joint activities.
Major-Brigadier of the Air Mauro Bellintani, president of COPAC, stated: “Each new F-39 Gripen delivered represents a significant advancement for the country. The FX-2 Project is the result of a series of interactions with various organisations of the Air Force Command and with Saab. Most importantly, it is the satisfaction of being able to provide the Air Force with yet another capability — a powerful asset — so that it may continue, with excellence, the constitutional mission of maintaining the sovereignty of Brazilian airspace.” He emphasised that the fighter adds to Brazil’s broader defence capacity.
As with previous aircraft, Gripen 4111 was produced at Saab’s headquarters in Linköping, Sweden, using aero-structures manufactured in Brazil, before arriving in the country by sea. Its transfer relied on a logistics process involving more than 30 areas from 10 institutions, including Saab teams, airport authorities and civil and military bodies from both nations, ensuring safe transport prior to its first flight on Brazilian territory.
The arrival of the eleventh aircraft follows shortly after the certification of air-to-air refuelling of the Gripen by the KC-390 Millennium, a milestone that significantly extends the fighter’s operational range. This development also strengthens the readiness of Brazil’s air defence by reducing the need for intermediate landings.
With the incorporation of Gripen 4111, the Brazilian Air Force now has ten aircraft operating within the First Air Defence Group, while the first aircraft continues to support test campaigns at the Gripen Flight Test Centre in Gavião Peixoto. The expanding fleet reflects ongoing progress in the Gripen Programme launched in 2013.
The Brazilian Gripen Programme was announced in 2013 when the fighter was selected to replace the Brazilian Air Force’s fleet and to support national defence industry development. In 2014, a contract was signed for 36 aircraft — 28 single-seat Gripen E and eight two-seat Gripen F — and in 2015 the contract came into effect, initiating Saab’s largest technology-transfer programme.
The agreement covers the aircraft, logistical support, support systems and related equipment, training, armaments and an industrial cooperation arrangement. Through technology transfer, more than 350 Brazilian engineers, technicians and pilots have been trained in theory and practice for the development, testing, production and maintenance of the advanced multirole fighter in Brazil.
Brazil now hosts essential Gripen infrastructure, including the Gripen Design and Development Network, the Gripen Flight Test Centre, and the production line in Gavião Peixoto, as well as Saab’s facility in São Bernardo do Campo responsible for producing aero-structures and maintaining the AESA radar and electronic-warfare sensors. The São Bernardo do Campo unit recently inaugurated a second rear-fuselage production line, marking industrial maturity by consolidating production of this complex structure that houses the aircraft’s engine. With the new line, annual capacity has doubled from eight to sixteen rear fuselages.
Source: Saab Brazil (press release).
