Photo: Saab
For several decades, the civilians of this planet got to know the name Saab as being that of a Swedish carmaker. Then GM climbed on board in the 1990s, and it needed just two decades to send Saab into a spin that eventually led to the brand's demise in 2014.
So we're now left with a single company going by this name, a not-so-common occurrence in the civilian world, but highly treasured by the military community. Saab AB is what the company is officially called, and it makes anything from surveillance equipment and weapons to full-blown fighter jets.
Gripen is what the fighter jet is called, a machine that flew for the first time back in 1988. Since that time, like any other weapons platforms of its kind, it constantly evolved.
The current versions of the European fighter jet are called Gripen E, F, and Maritime. The E is a single-seater variant of the plane, the F can accommodate a crew of two, while the Maritime, as the name says, was meant to be flown off the decks of aircraft carriers.
The backbone of this rather small fleet is of course the Gripen E, a machine "designed to defeat any adversary." It is powered by a single, modified GE engine that can usually develop 22,000-pounds of thrust, which is more than enough to push the plane to a top speed of Mach 2 (1,534 mph/2,469 kph).
The plane comes with ten hardpoints on which weapons and other military gear can be placed, and features a Mauser BK-27 gun that's been around since the 1960s.
The Gripen is quite popular with some of the world's national Air Forces, with the plane serving the needs of the Czech Republic, Hungary, South Africa, Thailand, and the UK. Sweden and Brazil however are the largest operators of Gripen fighter jets.
Until this week the Gripen E was fully assembled in Sweden alone, but that changed with the opening of an assembly line in Brazil. The Gripen will be put together from now on in South America as well, rolling on a line at the Embraer planet in Gaviao Peixoto.
The facility will first and foremost serve the needs of the Brazilian Air Force. The military branch has been waiting ever since 2014 for 28 Gripen Es and eight Fs to be delivered. Gaviao Peixoto will produce 15 of them, with deliveries expected to begin sometime in 2025. Planes will be put together using aerostructures made in Sweden.
The investment, both financial and in terms of training for personnel, is large enough for Saab and Embraer not to limit themselves to that, though. As such, the two have already announced plans for Brazil to become an export hub to Latin America and potentially other regions.
Gripen is what the fighter jet is called, a machine that flew for the first time back in 1988. Since that time, like any other weapons platforms of its kind, it constantly evolved.
The current versions of the European fighter jet are called Gripen E, F, and Maritime. The E is a single-seater variant of the plane, the F can accommodate a crew of two, while the Maritime, as the name says, was meant to be flown off the decks of aircraft carriers.
The backbone of this rather small fleet is of course the Gripen E, a machine "designed to defeat any adversary." It is powered by a single, modified GE engine that can usually develop 22,000-pounds of thrust, which is more than enough to push the plane to a top speed of Mach 2 (1,534 mph/2,469 kph).
The plane comes with ten hardpoints on which weapons and other military gear can be placed, and features a Mauser BK-27 gun that's been around since the 1960s.
The Gripen is quite popular with some of the world's national Air Forces, with the plane serving the needs of the Czech Republic, Hungary, South Africa, Thailand, and the UK. Sweden and Brazil however are the largest operators of Gripen fighter jets.
Until this week the Gripen E was fully assembled in Sweden alone, but that changed with the opening of an assembly line in Brazil. The Gripen will be put together from now on in South America as well, rolling on a line at the Embraer planet in Gaviao Peixoto.
The facility will first and foremost serve the needs of the Brazilian Air Force. The military branch has been waiting ever since 2014 for 28 Gripen Es and eight Fs to be delivered. Gaviao Peixoto will produce 15 of them, with deliveries expected to begin sometime in 2025. Planes will be put together using aerostructures made in Sweden.
The investment, both financial and in terms of training for personnel, is large enough for Saab and Embraer not to limit themselves to that, though. As such, the two have already announced plans for Brazil to become an export hub to Latin America and potentially other regions.
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