Saab presents new fighter aircraft
The company presented the new prototype of JAS 39 Gripen E in a large-scale roll out ceremony in Linköping on 18 May
Within the project Gripen NG (New Generation) Saab developed the single-seater Gripen E which will be followed by the two-seater version F.
The first test flight is predicted to take place later this year and it is expected that the Swedish Armed Forces receives the first deliveries of its thus far ordered 60 Gripen E in the year 2019.
Brazil, the first international customer who ordered this new generation of Gripen aircraft, is buying 28 pcs of Gripen E and 8 pcs of the F version.
The E / F version is based on the most modern and cutting-edge technology and is radically upgraded compared to earlier versions of the plane. The changes include new engine, new radar, larger fuselage, larger fuel tanks, more armament options, new sensors, new communications systems and modified cockpit.
During the rollout event Saab also featured how the today operational C and D versions of the Gripen will be further developed in the coming years, with a range of new advanced functionalities that ensure also this version's relevance and capability for many years to come.
The C/D version is today used successfully – besides the Swedish Armed Forces - in Hungary, the Czech Republic, South Africa, Thailand and at the Empire Test Pilot School in England.