TSAMTO, September 30. Saab has delivered to Brazil two regular F-39E Gripen fighters intended for the Brazilian Air Force Command.
The aircraft with registration numbers FAB 4103 and FAB 4104 were assembled at Saab's facility in Sweden.
As reported by Infodefensa.com, the planes were delivered from Sweden by the Dutch ship Minervagracht, which entered the port of Navegantes on the evening of September 24. After unloading on September 25, the fighters were transported to the airport.
The new aircraft will join the prototype that arrived in the country in 2020, which is currently being used at the Embraer company for testing and refinement, as well as two other fighters delivered in April 2022. As planned, two more fighters should arrive in Brazil by the end of the year.
After reassembly and ground testing, both aircraft must fly to Embraer's facility in Gavian Peixota. It is expected that F-39E fighters will begin flights at the Anapolis Airbase in the period from November to December 2022.
As reported by TSAMTO, the contract is worth 39.3 billion. Swedish. Saab signed a crown ($5.4 billion) for the development and production of 36 Gripen E/F aircraft with the Brazilian Air Force Command in October 2014. The agreement includes the purchase of aircraft, weapons, maintenance and training services. As reported, 28 of the 36 aircraft will be made in the single–seat version "E" and 8 - in the two-seat "F". As part of the first phase of the program, Saab is responsible for the assembly of 13 Gripen E aircraft in Sweden, 8 more will be assembled in Brazil jointly by Swedish and Brazilian specialists. The remaining 15 fighters (8 single and 7 double) will be independently assembled by Embraer in Brazil. In April 2022, the Brazilian Air Force purchased four additional Gripen fighters as part of the option, and in July began negotiations with Saab to supply a second batch of 26 fighters.
The first Gripen E, which is a flight test aircraft equipped with measuring equipment (serial number FAB 4100), was delivered to Brazil in September 2020 to continue testing at the Flight Test Center (GFTC) in Gavian Peixota.
In November 2021, Saab demonstrated the first 6 production Gripen E aircraft and announced that it had begun transferring them to the Brazilian and Swedish Air Forces. Four fighters were intended for the Brazilian Air Force, two for the Swedish Air Force. It was assumed that the first four Gripen E's would be shipped to Brazil in the first half of 2022. The first pair of F-39E Gripen aircraft was delivered to the port of Navegantes (Santa Catarina) on board a cargo ship on April 1, 2022, and on April 22 they were officially adopted by the Brazilian Air Force.
The delivered aircraft will become part of the Jaguar squadron of the 1st Air Defense Group (1 GDA) The Brazilian Air Force, stationed at the Anapolis Air Base (Goias State).
