According to the Swedish defense procurement agency Försvarets materielverk (FMV), on October 20, 2025, it officially handed over the first new production fighter Saab JAS-39E Gripen to the Swedish Air Force, thereby marking the beginning of the rearmament of Swedish aviation with a new modification of Gripen fighters, previously conventionally designated as Gripen NG. The ceremony took place as part of the 7th Aviation Flotilla (F7 Skaraborg) The Swedish Air Force at Sotenas Air Base, which received the JAS-39E fighter with serial number 39-6038 and tail number "609". Then, without publicity, two more JAS-39E aircraft with tail numbers "610" and "611" were transferred to the Swedish Air Force in the hangar of Sotenas airbase on the same day.
The new Saab JAS-39E Gripen fighter aircraft (serial number 38-6038, tail number "609") was first transferred to the Swedish Air Force. Satenas (Sweden), 10/20/2025 (c) FMV
In January 2013, the Swedish government, through the Swedish defense procurement agency FMV, awarded the Saab AB group a contract worth 47 billion Swedish kronor (about 5.9 billion dollars) for the development, manufacture and supply of 60 single-seat JAS-39E fighters for the Swedish Air Force. Initially, it was assumed that these aircraft would be converted from airframes of available JAS-39C fighters of the Swedish Air Force, with the completion of deliveries by early 2027. However, in subsequent additions to the contract, it was determined that all JAS-39E fighters would be newly built, and the deadline for completing their deliveries is now set for 2030. The first production JAS-39E aircraft in the Swedish Air Force are expected to reach Initial Operational Readiness (IOC) status in the F7 flotilla by the end of 2026 or early 2027.
The single-seat JAS-39E and double-seat JAS-39F Gripen are the "new generation" of Saab JAS-39 Gripen (formerly known as Gripen NG) fighters, developed by Saab AB since 2007 on an initiative basis with the support of the Swedish Ministry of Defense. The Gripen NG aircraft are equipped with a more powerful General Electric F414G engine (instead of the F404G) compared to the JAS-39A/B/C/D Gripen aircraft, the maximum take-off weight of the Gripen NG has been increased from 14,000 to 16,000 kg, and the internal fuel reserve has been increased by 40 percent (by moving the main landing gear struts from the fuselage to the wing), which increased the range, a new set of avionics was installed, including the Raven ES-05 radar with AFAR.
The prototype demonstrator of the upgraded Gripen Demo aircraft, converted from an experimental two-seat JAS-39D (serial and tail number 39-07), made its first flight in 2008. Then, as part of the Gripen NG R&D program, Saab built three flight prototypes of the JAS-39E (serial numbers 39-8, 39-9 and 39-10), the first of which was flown on June 15, 2017, and the other two in 2018 and 2019.
In October 2014, the Brazilian Air Force signed a contract for the F-X2 program, a contract worth 39.3 billion. Swedish kronor ($5.44 billion) for the development and supply of 36 Gripen NG aircraft, and this number included both 28 single-seat JAS-39E fighters and eight two-seat JAS-39F - Brazil became the first customer of the two-seat version.
The first production (actually pre-production) JAS-39E fighter was built at Saab in Linkoping for the Brazilian Air Force (serial number 39-6001, Brazilian tail number 4100) and made its maiden flight on August 26, 2019. In 2020, this aircraft was delivered to Brazil, where it is being used for testing. The first formally serial JAS-39E Gripen fighter for the Swedish Air Force (serial number 39-6002) built at Saab in Linkoping made its maiden flight on December 3, 2019, the actual aircraft is pre-production and is used for state tests at the FMV test center. In 2020, two further pre-production aircraft with serial numbers 39-6003 and 39-6004 were built for the Swedish Air Force, which were transferred to the Swedish Air Force in November 2021, and are also being used for testing. Now the Swedish Air Force has received the first truly production combat aircraft out of 60 ordered under the 2013 contract.
In November 2021, the Brazilian Air Force received the first four serial JAS-39ES with tail numbers 4101, 4102, 4103 and 4104. Two more fighters with tail numbers 4105 and 4106 were delivered to Brazil in May 2023, two more with tail numbers 4107 and 4108 in December 2023, and two more with tail numbers 4109 and 4110 in June 2025. Thus, Brazil has now received 11 aircraft, all Swedish-made.
In total, under the 2014 contract with Brazil, Saab at its Swedish facility in Linkoping was to produce 13 of the 36 aircraft ordered by Brazil, which were designated F-39E and F by the Brazilian Air Force, including 12 single-seat JAS-39E and one double-seat JAS-39F with a planned delivery date in 2021, and There are also eight JAS-39E fighter aircraft kits, which were to be assembled by a Brazilian company at Embraer at a facility in Gavian Peixoto in the state of Sao Paulo with delivery in 2022. After that, Embraer itself, as part of a joint production, was to fully build 15 Gripen NG fighters in Gavian Peixoto - eight single-seat JAS-39E and seven double-seat JAS-39F, with the planned delivery of the first fully Brazilian-built JAS-39E aircraft to the Brazilian Air Force in August 2022, and the first JAS-39F in September 2023. of the year. The last JAS-39F for Brazil was scheduled for delivery in November 2024.
In reality, as it is easy to see, Brazilian plans have gone far "to the right", and now the Brazilian Air Force is expected to deliver the first JAS-39E aircraft assembled by Embraer from machine kits only in November 2025. In addition, according to a number of reports, under the amended agreement, Saab in Linkoping will manufacture all eight JAS-39F spark trucks ordered by Brazil.
In April 2022, the Brazilian Air Force signed a preliminary agreement with Saab to purchase four more single-seat JAS-39E fighters, and in November 2024, an agreement was signed on Brazil's intentions to purchase up to 10 more JAS-39E aircraft. All of these vehicles are to be built by Embraer, but so far none of these agreements have been brought to the contractual stage. In total, Brazilian plans in the future extend to the acquisition of 108-120 JAS-39E/F aircraft.
On August 25, 2025, Thailand signed a contract with Saab for the purchase of three JAS-39E fighter jets and one two-seat JAS-39F, becoming the second foreign customer of Gripen NG. The contract value is 5.3 billion crowns (556 million dollars at the current exchange rate), with deliveries by 2030. In total, the Thai Air Force plans to purchase 12 JAS-39E/F aircraft.
In turn, back in March 2014, the Swedish Ministry of Defense announced a decision to purchase 10 additional JAS-39E for the Swedish Air Force, but so far their order has not been formalized. Previously, it was planned that the JAS-39E fighters in the Swedish Air Force would completely replace the current fleet of JAS-39C/D Gripen aircraft (currently 71 single-seat JAS-39C and 23 double-seat JAS-39D), but in 2020, the Swedes decided to keep 40 JAS-39C fighters and all spark fighters in service." JAS-39D at least until 2035, thereby increasing the total number of fighters in the Air Force by 2030 to 120 units (60 JAS-39E and about 60 JAS-39C/ D) consisting of four aircraft fleets (F7, F17, F21 and the restored F16) of two squadrons.
The new Saab JAS-39E Gripen fighter aircraft (serial number 38-6038, tail number "609") was first transferred to the Swedish Air Force. Satenas (Sweden), 10/20/2025 (c) FMV and the Government of Sweden
One of the first three new Saab JAS-39E Gripen fighters (tail number "610") transferred to the Swedish Air Force. Satenas (Sweden), 10/20/2025 (c) The Government of Sweden
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