Gripen around the world

C'est du flan ce sea grippen.
Trop leger pour une quelqonque utilité sur un PA (armement,carburant).
Cela reviendra trop chére a développer pour une serie qui sera insignifiante.


non le mieux c'est d'acheter du Rafale M .............

Citation :

SAAB STARTS ASSEMBLY OF FIRST PRE-PRODUCTION GRIPEN E

3 July 2013, in News

Defence and security company Saab has started the assembly of the next generation Gripen, the Gripen E. First to be constructed is the front fuselage of the first pre-production test aircraft 39-8.

Following a short and intense period of design using the latest tools and methods, through so called ‘Model Based Design’, the construction of the Gripen E begins with the manufacturing and assembly of all parts of the fuselage; the largest and most time consuming part of the airframe. These parts will then be joined together and assembled into a complete airframe. This is followed by an intensive construction period to install cables, mount systems, the outer shell and other equipment. More than 1,000 people at Saab are now working solely with the development and production of the Gripen E.

“What we are experiencing now is a leap in technology for Saab and the global aeronautical industry as we can see the latest and most modern fighter being constructed using the latest processes, methods and tools. This allows us to bring forward an even more capable fighter at an even more favourable life cycle cost,” says Lennart Sindahl, Head of Business Area Aeronautics at Saab. “Following years of R&D investments in aeronautical design, we can offer unique opportunities for transfer of knowledge and technology by inviting customer countries’ industries into the work on Gripen E. The Gripen E programme will also continue to drive technological development as well as the creation of jobs, both in Sweden and in other countries.”

Based on the design of previous versions of the Gripen system, the Gripen E offers a next generation sensor suite, new communication links, revolutionary avionics architecture, more thrust, increased flight time, more weapon stations and load capability, a fully digital cockpit including HUD (Head-Up Display) and a brand new electronic warfare system.

The test aircraft 39-8 will be the first complete pre-production version of the Gripen E and will be used to demonstrate new features and capabilites. The technological leaps in the Gripen E have been proven in the Gripen demonstrator programme with the Gripen E/F demo aircraft that has flown over 250 hours in countries such as Sweden, the UK, India and Switzerland (in Emmen in October 2012, January and April 2013) since 2008.

On February 15, Saab signed an agreement with the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) regarding development and modification of 60 Gripen E for Sweden during the period 2013-2026 as well as a possible order for new production of Gripen E for Switzerland.

http://www.saabgroup.com

belle video,a deguster en full  

Citation :

Saab confirms twin-seat Gripen F development for Brazil


Saab has confirmed to IHS Jane's that Brazil's aerospace industry will be given the opportunity to develop a two-seater version of the Gripen NG as part of the USD4.5 million consignment of 36 fighter aircraft ordered by the country.

At a meeting on 30 January with Brazilian aerospace industry experts and representatives from São Bernardo do Campo in São Paulo, the vice-president of Saab, Dan Jangblad, discussed Brazil's participation in the production of the two-seater Gripen F model.

Out of the 36 fighter jets under the FAB F-X2 programme, eight of the aircraft will be twin-seat Gripen Fs and the rest will be in the single-seat Gripen Es.

http://www.janes.com

Citation :

  Saab veut rendre le Gripen plus furtif

Le 10/03/2014 à 17:40   | Par Guillaume Steuer  


Le Gripen E sera plus furtif que l'actuel JAS39C/D

On savait qu'il devait emporter plus de carburant, plus d'armement, tout en étant doté d'un système d'armes entièrement rénové. Mais le Gripen E, dernière évolution du monoréacteur suédois JAS39 en cours de développement par Saab pour la Suède et la Suisse, devrait également être plus furtif. "Nous sommes contractuellement tenus de réduire la signature équivalente radar de l'appareil", a expliqué aujourd'hui Björn Johansson, ingénieur en chef du programme Gripen E, lors d'une conférence de presse qui s'est tenue à Linköping dans le fief de l'avionneur suédois.

Si les moyens mis en oeuvre pour remplir cet objectif n'ont évidemment pas été exposés dans le détail, l'ingénieur a toutefois souligné que cette furtivité accrue serait obtenue "par une combinaison de modifications structurelles et de nouveaux matériaux".

Le représentant de Saab a par ailleurs rappelé que la taille réduite du Gripen par rapport à la plupart des avions de combat modernes lui conférait de facto un avantage en termes de signature équivalente radar vis-à-vis de certains de ses concurrents.

Le futur Gripen E, dont un premier prototype représentatif de la configuration de série doit voler début 2015, sera également plus discret grâce à l'intégration d'un capteur infrarouge de recherche et poursuite (IRST) développé par Selex Galileo et dont les essais en vol vont commencer dans les prochains jours à Linköping sur le démonstrateur JAS39-7, qui sert de banc d'essais pour les technologies du Gripen E. Ce dernier devrait être qualifié en 2018, à l'issue d'un programme d'essais qui impliquera trois prototypes.

Le JAS39E, dont la Suède s'est engagée à acquérir 60 exemplaires si la Suisse confirme sa commande pour 22 appareils (un référendum populaire à ce sujet se tiendra le 18 mai prochain), sera également doté d'un tout nouveau système d'autoprotection. Celui-ci incorporera notamment des contre-mesures électromagnétiques rénovées, avec l'intégration de nouvelles antennes dans les pylônes de bout d'aile et d'un brouilleur intégré sur la dérive.

http://www.air-cosmos.com/defense/saab-veut-rendre-le-gripen-plus-furtif.html

Citation :

Saab reveals full Gripen E design, cost savings


Saab has started fuselage assembly work on its first of three Gripen E test aircraft and revealed its detailed design for the future variant, which it says will beat the development and operational cost performance of the C-model fighter now flown by five air forces.

Decisions in favour of the Gripen E from the governments of Sweden, Switzerland and Brazil in recent months have prompted a surge of fresh interest in the development, says Saab deputy chief executive and head of aeronautics Lennart Sindahl. “Wherever we go, we see a good situation,” he says. The company is confident of a "yes" vote in a Swiss public referendum on 18 May over a planned 22-aircraft procurement, and also of closing out talks with Brazil for its 36-unit F-X2 deal by late this year.


Saab

“For almost 16 years we have been in discussion with Brazil, and one thing is clear – they want the Gripen,” Sindahl says. Ongoing talks following the nation’s December 2013 selection include aspects such as the requested development of a two-seat Gripen F – a model not required by either the Swedish or Swiss air forces. “Is it for training purposes, or for an advanced rear seat? We have started that discussion,” he adds.

Saab is adopting a stand-off strategy with regard to the Swiss Gripen Fund Law referendum, says campaign director Richard Smith. The Swiss air force project has a fixed price of just over Swfr3.1 billion ($3.6 billion), with Saab’s stake worth Swfr2.2 billion, and a weapons and sensors package valued at Swfr300 million. Offsets linked to the purchase will total Swfr2.5 billion, to be placed within 10 years of a deal being signed.

Switzerland’s Armasuisse procurement agency has so far approved offset proposals worth Swfr250 million, against an agreed pre-contract goal of Swfr300 million. Saab has recently contracted RUAG Aviation to manufacture electronic warfare pylons for installation on the wing leading edge, and this year also wants to select Swiss-based suppliers for the Gripen E’s rear fuselage, tail cone and airbrakes. “We’ve delivered a good offset package, and I believe we’ll get the majority we need,” says Smith.


Saab

Both Brazil and Switzerland are also being offered bridging solutions using Gripen C/Ds to be sourced from the Swedish air force. If advanced – and combined with the conversion of 60 of the service’s C-model aircraft to the E standard from later this decade – such arrangements could pose a challenge to Stockholm, says chief of staff Maj Gen Micael Byden. “There will be consequences, but we can handle them,” he adds.

The Swedish air force – which has so far received around 95 aircraft from an eventual 100 C/Ds converted from the A/B standard – also retains an aspiration to increase its eventual Gripen E fleet to 80, Byden says. It expects to keep all its D-model trainers until the last new fighters arrive around 2025 or 2026, he adds.

Saab has meanwhile started assembling fuselage parts for test aircraft 39-8 and static test article 39-83 at its Linköping site, and also is producing the first components for flight test asset 39-9.

First flight of the lead test aircraft is scheduled for the second half of 2015, with the single-seat asset to be used primarily for airframe and flight control system testing. The next example will be flown in the first half of 2016, and will support tactical systems work. Any required adaptations will be embodied with flight test instrumentation-equipped aircraft 39-10, which will join the test campaign in early 2017 to prove the final E-model configuration.

A first production example will follow close behind, with Saab targeting military type certification in early 2018, clearing the way for deliveries to Sweden and then Switzerland later the same year, in the MS21 software standard.

Once at full rate, the company aims to be able to deliver a new-build aircraft within 18 months of a contract award, or to convert existing airframes within a year.

Sweden’s remanufactured aircraft will retain almost none of the previous airframe, but will reuse parts of its fuel and air systems, plus its ejection seat, windshield, canopy and outer wing elevons.

Saab

While externally similar, the slightly larger E will have five through-fuselage, aluminium-lithium frames at the heart of its structure, which will support its airframe through to its inner-wing weapons pylons. Its tail section has been redesigned to accommodate the General Electric F414G-39E turbofan engine, and a new intake has been added at the base of the tail for a second environmental control system, which is needed to cool its Selex ES Raven ES-05 active electronically scanned array radar and electronic warfare equipment.

The Gripen’s air intake design has also been enlarged, and new landing gear installed. The latter includes a larger, single nose wheel and main gear which retracts into the wing, freeing fuselage space and enabling a 40% increase in internal fuel capacity. Two additional weapon stations have also been introduced beneath the fuselage.

Maximum take-off weight will be 16.5t, with the aircraft’s empty weight accounting for just 20% of this, at around 3t.

Referring to the aircraft’s sensor configuration, which also includes the Selex Skyward-G infrared search and track (IRST) turret and an advanced interrogation friend-or-foe suite, Saab's Sindahl says: “It will be the best in the world when we ship the first one in 2018. We have really picked the best things.”

Risk-reduction work is being conducted using a modified Gripen D demonstrator, now referred to as aircraft 39-7. This should be flown with the IRST sensor later this month, while a new version of its ES-05 radar (file image below) is currently being shipped to Linköping.


Selex ES

First flown in May 2008, the test platform has now completed around 300 flights totalling 260h, says Mats Lundberg, head of flight test and verification. It is also currently being used to test the Gripen E’s digital head-up display.

Lars Ydreskog, Saab’s head of aerospace operations, says the company’s use of a model-based design technique based around Dassault Systemes’ CATIA software is generating huge benefits for the E project. “You can show the operator how they will do something in 2023, before you’ve done anything in the development,” he notes. Combined with a reduced parts count – for example, a single machined part is now used to construct the radar frame, versus more than 20 on the C – and reduced lead times, the new version will be cheaper to produce. Compared against 2009 prices, “it’s going to be a 50% productivity increase”, Ydreskog says. The E-model demonstrator activity using aircraft 39-7 has also been performed for just 40% of its initial projected cost, he adds.

Saab has also driven increased efficiency through its experience in the Gripen’s conversion from the A/B to C/D standards, as well as through manufacturing parts for Airbus and Boeing commercial products, and design and production work for the Dassault-led Neuron unmanned combat air system technology demonstrator. The company’s aeronautics unit now has around 3,000 engineers, 800 of which were recruited in the last two to three years.

“We’re pushing the performance more than we’ve ever done, and pushing the costs down,” says Sindahl, while Ydreskog comments: “We are never satisfied – we are always challenging ourselves.” This experience is also now being drawn on by Saab with Boeing, with the companies working together in pursuit of the US Air Force’s potentially 350-aircraft T-X jet trainer requirement.

The increased use of design- and flight test-modelling for the Gripen E also means that while almost 4,000 sorties were required to prepare the C/D model, the three new test platforms should fly only a combined 1,200 times.

The global fleet of Gripens now operated by the Czech Republic, Hungary, South Africa, Sweden and Thailand has logged 203,000 flight hours, according to Saab. The Swedish air force lists its current per-hour operating cost with the type as being around SKr48,000 ($7,560).

In addition to its current favoured position in Brazil and Switzerland, Saab is also currently offering the Gripen to Malaysia, either for buy or lease, and believes Thailand could acquire a further batch to expand its 12-strong fleet. Further sales prospects listed by Sindahl include Belgium, Botswana, Estonia, Finland, Indonesia, Latvia, Lithuania, Peru, the Philippines, Portugal and Slovakia.

The company also expects the Czech Republic to sign a contract in April to extend its lease deal for 14 C/Ds until at least 2026, mirroring a decision approved by Hungary in 2011.

Longer term, the manufacturer has set a target to sell 350-400 units over the next 20 years. Pointing to the current level of international interest in the programme, Sindahl says: “I think 350-400 aircraft is really feasible”.

http://www.flightglobal.com

Citation :

Gripen flies with passive targeting sensor

Saab has successfully test flown a key passive detection capability for its in-development Gripen E fighter, using dedicated test aircraft 39-7.

Developed by Selex ES’s Airborne & Space Systems division, the Skyward-G infrared search and track (IRST) sensor will give the combat aircraft a long-range means of detecting and identifying potential airborne threats, without the need to first switch on its active electronically scanned array radar. Secondary applications include the ability to act as a navigation and landing aid during darkness.

“The first flight in the Gripen E test aircraft with IRST has been performed with very good results,” says Hans Einerth, wing commander flying at Saab’s Linköping production and test site in Sweden. “Multiple targets were detected, tracked and identified, and the system works perfectly.”



Saab

Skyward-G comprises a sensor head unit installed in front of the fighter’s cockpit, and an associated processor unit box, which is stowed in the nose avionics bay. The entire system weighs less than 40kg (88lb), says Selex.

“The [IRST] integration and development work is progressing according to schedule,” says Saab. The company is producing three dedicated E-model test aircraft, with its current 39-7 asset being a modified D-model Gripen. The new-generation version should enter use in 2018, with operators expected to include Sweden, plus export customers Brazil and Switzerland; both have yet to finalise planned orders.

http://www.flightglobal.com

Citation :

Les pro-Gripen concoctent un plan B, Maurer dit non

http://www.20min.ch/ro/news/dossier/votation/story/Les-pro-Gripen-concoctent-un-plan-B--Maurer-dit-non-19725228?redirect=mobi&nocache=0.05882127536460757

Citation :

RAAF overlooks Saab Gripen for more expensive, controversial Joint Srike Fighter



Saab Gripen ... a single engine, two-crew, multi-role fighter made in Sweden. Source: News Corp Australia

THIS is the low-cost, high performance fighter jet that Australia overlooked when the RAAF spent more than $6 billion to fill a capability gap between its retiring F-111 and Hornet fleets and the controversial stealth F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

The Saab Gripen is a single engine, two-crew, multi-role fighter made in Sweden and according to the builder it costs about $US7000 an hour to run compared to $US11,000 for the Boeing Super Hornet operated by the Royal Australian Air Force and $21,000 an hour for the next generation JSF.

The plane costs almost the same as a Super Hornet to buy, but Saab claims the Gripen requires just 2.5 hours of maintenance for every hour of flying.

It is designed to operate in isolation with just six support personnel during wartime and is in service with Sweden (60), Thailand (12) and Brazil (36) and will soon be bought by Switzerland (22).



Fighting power ... the Saab Gripen is in service with Sweden, Thailand and Brazil and will soon be bought by Switzerland. (22). Source: News Corp Australia

It is in the sights of numerous other countries around the globe including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, Peru, Czech Republic, Hungary, Denmark, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Slovakia, Belgium and Colombia.

All these nations have small military budgets so the cost of purchase and operating a fighter fleet is a vital factor and Saab’s commitment to breaking the cost curve has broad appeal.

The company has built more than 5000 military and civil aircraft since the 1950s and its latest jet is 30 per cent cheaper than its predecessor.

Technical innovation is a Saab trait and the landing gear on the aircraft has been redesigned so the jet can carry 40 per cent more fuel internally.

Company executives have all but abandoned hope of selling the Gripen to Australia and other US F-35 allies such as Japan and South Korea.

Efficient ... the Saab Gripen costs almost the same as a Super Hornet to buy but Saab cla

Efficient ... the Saab Gripen costs almost the same as a Super Hornet to buy but Saab claims it requires less hours of maintenance. Source: News Corp Australia

They are more than happy to describe the Joint Strike Fighter as a “slug’’ and to quote the jet’s critics comparing a fight with the new American stealth jet to “clubbing baby seals to death’’.

“Australia has been turned towards the US, but Brazil and Switzerland have changed all that,’’ one executive said.

“Why wouldn’t Australia think the same way?’’

Sweden has a population of just nine million people and companies such as Saab and its 14,000 hi-tech staff are at the leading edge of advanced military and civil technologies including fighters, aircraft components, submarines, radars, combat systems, weapons and simulation technology.

***Ian McPhedran travelled to Sweden as a guest of Saab.

http://www.news.com.au

Citation :

Saab responds to Swiss Gripen defeat

Saab's Gripen E programme has suffered a setback, with the Swiss government having narrowly lost out in a public referendum on whether to fund a planned 22-aircraft acquisition of the Swedish-built type.

Held on 18 May, the nation's vote on whether to advance with the Gripen Fund Law was defeated by a "no" vote representing just over 52% of respondents. In a statement released after the result, Saab says this "means that the Gripen E procurement process in Switzerland stops".

Responding to the outcome, Swiss federal councilor Ueli Maurer warns: "This decision will cause a security gap. We will do everything we can to fill this gap in these difficult circumstances as quickly as is possible. Different options on how best to ensure the armed force's operational readiness must be considered in the next few months."

Maurer adds that "it will be some time before new proposals are submitted on how to protect Swiss airspace after the anticipated decommissioning of the [Boeing] F/A-18s in 2025. The federal council and parliament will then be required to decide on filling the security gap." The Gripens were to replace the Swiss air force's remaining Northrop F-5 fighters, from later this decade.



Saab

Despite the disappointment, the Swedish airframer comments: "For Saab, the Gripen E programme continues according to plan, with development and production of 60 Gripen E for Sweden ongoing and deliveries scheduled for 2018." And it adds: "The negotiations regarding 36 Gripen NG to Brazil are ongoing, and according to plan with the ambition from both parties, an agreement should be signed in 2014."

“We respect the process in Switzerland, and do not comment on today’s outcome," says Saab chief executive Håkan Buskhe. "Following selection in 2011, hundreds of business relationships in Switzerland have been created through the Swiss industrial participation programme, which was created in relation to the Gripen E procurement. These are relationships we look forward to continuing as long as possible.”

Saab adds that of the more than 500 supply deals arranged with 125 Swiss businesses in support of the planned deal, "contracts placed will be honoured, subject to their terms and conditions."

However, the public decision could threaten some proposed collaborative measures, such as a pact between Saab and Pilatus to offer the PC-21 turboprop as a possible solution for Sweden's future pilot training requirements.

http://www.flightglobal.com

Citation :

Saab flies new countermeasures pod on Gripen


Saab’s new self-protection system for fixed-wing aircraft – the ESTL – flew on board the Gripen multi-role fighter for the first time earlier this month, the company has revealed.

The maiden flight of the ESTL system was carried out using a Swedish air force Gripen C “in early June”, with Saab expecting the additional capability to help draw interest from potential international customers.



Saab

“This successful first flight is an important step for the ESTL project and we look forward to continuing test flights and increased customer interest in many countries worldwide,” Carl-Johan Bergholm, head of the Electronic Warfare Systems business unit at Saab, says in a company statement.

ESTL is a self-protection system available for any fixed-wing aircraft that can be installed on a mission-to-mission basis, and configured for different threat scenarios, says Saab.

The system provides “covert sustainable pre-emptive dispensing”, missile warning and forward firing of flares.

“ESTL offers enhanced survivability in combat and conflict situations,” Bergholm says. Traditional countermeasures may encounter difficulties with the latest generation of air-to-air and surface-to-air missiles, but the ESTL concept includes a module of forward-firing flares, he adds. “This, together with the missile approach warning sensors and an optional chaff capability, makes ESTL a powerful shield against the latest missile developments.”



Saab

In addition, a standard Raytheon AIM-9 Sidewinder and AIM-120 AMRAAM interface makes it possible to share ESTL units among the aircraft of a whole fleet. Mass and aerodynamics are on a par with the missiles, which substantially simplifies integration and certification, Saab notes.

http://www.flightglobal.com