Saab Gripen

[Mossie]

Since the Empire Test Pilots School operate the Gripen, surely it's be rude not to put one in Raspberry Ripple???

[Scooterman]

What, like this?     Mine from a few years back.

[Mossie]

I remember seeing it now you mention it!

[pyro-manic]

Oooh, that's gorgeous.

[Spey_Phantom]

SAAB has recently touted Brasil as a possible export customer for the Sea Gripen this week.
http://www.defencetalk.com/saab-touts-naval-sea-gripen-variant-47793/

i wrote something about it over on the Key Publishing forum, you wont like what i wrote, but that RW Nils Talking.
but i do like the Sea Gripen as a WHIF 

to quote:

althought i have to admit i liked the idea of a Navalised Gripen at first, a few years later i am having second thoughts about the viability of the project.
and this for a number of reasons.

the first is that the market for Navalised aircraft is very small, since there arent much countries that own and operate conventional or STOBAR carriers.
India was mentioned as a potential customer, but since the Indian Navy has already ordered MIG-29K's and Naval LCA, i dont think it requires a third platform unless the naval LCA gets cancelled.
the mention of the UK and Italy as a potential customer can also be waved off, mostly because both countries has already settled for the F-35B and none of there carriers are fitted with arrestor cables to allow the Sea Gripen to land on the ships. besides, i dont think Italy will convert its Cavour carrier into a STOBAR configuration, not with the current financil crisis.
the same can be said for Spain, witch will most likely go for the F-35B (unless SAAB creates a STOVL gripen) and China is definatly a no go.

this pretty much leaves brasil (as noted in the article) as the only most likely customer, but my guess is the number of Sea Gripens required will be arround 12 to 18.
so the small number of aircraft required, wont justify for its development cost. so they might end up buying surplus US Navy F/A-18C/D (the E/F version would be to heavy for the Sao Paolo)


Second factor is that Sweden never had, and likely never will, operate(d) an aircraft carrier. so Sweden has no experience in the developement of carrier besed aircraft, let alone the requirements (more then just a beefed up airframe, tailhook and landing gear). and Sweden has no facilities to simulate carrier landings (although it could move its testing to the US or Russia).
export customers (if any) will most likely buy naval aircraft from a country that has experience building them, like the US and France (Hornet and Rafale-M).


just my 2 cents 

[rickshaw]

I'd have thought it would have done it's testing in the UK?  Doesn't the UK still maintain a simulated carrier deck landing system at one of its airfields (Boscombe Down?) ?

[Gondor]

I'd have thought it would have done it's testing in the UK?  Doesn't the UK still maintain a simulated carrier deck landing system at one of its airfields (Boscombe Down?) ?

I think it's Bedford

Gondor

[PR19_Kit]

It was at Bedford but that closed some years ago. They have dummy decks at Culdrose and Yeovilton still AFAIK.

[darthspud]

Yeovilton had it last time I was there.
i'll look at Airday in July

[Thorvic]

Those are just painted concrete runway areas set up in the style on an Invincible class for the fomer Shar pilot training at Yeovilton and the School of Aircraft Handling for deck crew at Culdrose. Rickshae is thingking of RAE Bedford where we had an Arrestor Hook and Steam Catapult systems for testing Naval Aircraft with the hardware, but that went with the demise of the RN Fleet Carriers and only the USN still have similar facilities these days. 

The Naval Gripen office being set up in the UK was to make use of what experience we had and use our contacts with the USN and French Navy with our CVF and Carrier Cooperation deals to get a better feel for the type of operation, it was also to be tied in with the UK CVF design in CATOBAR config to offer as a package to the Brazilian Navy.

[Supertom]

Gonna resurrect this three-year-old thread, because this happened today:

http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/air-space/2016/05/18/gripen-e-debuts-saab-reports-continued-interest-c-variants/84537568/

http://saab.com/air/gripen-fighter-system/gripen/gripen/the-fighter/Gripen-NG/

[Spey_Phantom]

first flight for Brasilian Gripen-E 

https://saabgroup.com/media/news-press/news/2019-08/first-brazilian-gripen-e-completes-its-first-flight/

high-res pic: https://saabgroup.com/globalassets/cision/images/20190826-en-3394084-1.jpg

[Spey_Phantom]

i was thinking, when Sweden offered the gripen to India, they said they could source theyre weaponry from anywhere they want, either US, EU, Israeli, South African,.....

this got me thinking, what if Saab was to create a Gripen with Russian weapons, engines and avionics.
i think a Gripen-Ru would be powered by a single RD-93 engine, similar to that of the MiG-29M & MiG-35 and compatible with Russian R-74 and R-77 AAM's. for Air to ground it could be equiped with Kh-38 ASM, Kab-500L and Kab-500LR guided bombs...

also, love the new splinter camo for the swedish Gripen E's

[Hobbes]

Agreed, that looks great.

[ysi_maniac]

No Canard Gripen