Inside Brazil’s Bet to Build — and Export — Its Own Fighter Jet

Defense

The overseas debut of Brazil’s home-built Gripen was a milestone, but the bigger story sits on the ground. The Brazil Gripen program is really a bet to build an aerospace industry — and to export the Swedish-designed jet across the region.

The setting was Salitre 2026, the biggest combined air exercise in South America, held in the Atacama desert of northern Chile. Brazil’s F-39 Gripen joined aircraft from four other nations and the host, integrating into a single mock coalition.

The industry behind Brazil’s Gripen program

The Gripen had flown in exercises before, but always inside Brazil, where its air force acted as host. Salitre marked the first time the type operated beyond national borders and slotted into another country’s command structure.

That distinction matters more than it sounds. Flying at home is a test of the aircraft; flying abroad, under shared procedures with allied forces, is a test of the whole support chain that a serious air arm needs to project power.

The deployment also lands at a symbolic moment. In March, Brazil unveiled the first Gripen built entirely on its own territory at the Gavião Peixoto plant, becoming the first country to produce the fighter outside Sweden.

Weeks earlier the jet had also flown in a large joint exercise at home, working alongside the Brazilian navy and army. Taking it abroad was the logical next step in a deliberate, staged rollout rather than a sudden leap.

What Salitre is and who took part

Salitre has been staged by the Chilean Air Force since 2004, and this fifth edition ran from late June into July at Cerro Moreno Air Base near Antofagasta. The Atacama’s clear skies make it close to ideal for flying complex missions day after day.

Chile hosted air forces from Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay and the United States. The Americans brought F-16 fighters and MQ-9 Reaper drones, while Paraguay debuted its Super Tucano light attack aircraft.

The declared goal was interoperability to a NATO standard, meaning the forces trained so a Brazilian jet, an American tanker and a Chilean fighter could plug into one shared plan. The exercise was built around a fictional crisis run from a single combined command center.

Organizers were at pains to stress the drill signals no rising tension. It is a long-planned, scheduled event, but a real measure of how seriously these neighbors take the ability to act together in a disaster or a security emergency.

The industrial stakes for Brazil

For Brazil, the Gripen is more than an air-defense purchase. It is the centerpiece of an effort to build a domestic aerospace industry capable of producing, integrating and supporting a modern fighter, with an eye on future exports.

The regional map gives that ambition a shape. Colombia has also chosen the Gripen, so a credible showing abroad strengthens the case for a Brazil-anchored support hub for the jet across South America.

There is a competitive edge to it as well. Peru’s recent decision to buy the American F-16 over the Gripen was a setback for the Swedish jet, making every visible success of Brazil’s home-built version useful to the wider sales pitch.

The numbers behind the program are large. Brazil’s original order for the type ran well beyond $5bn, and the local production line at Gavião Peixoto is meant to turn that spending into lasting jobs and know-how rather than a one-off import.

For a foreign reader, the takeaway is about ambition as much as aircraft. Few countries outside the major powers build advanced fighters at all, so a jet that can now fly and fight abroad is a marker of where Brazil wants its defense industry to sit.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Brazil Gripen fighter?

It is the Brazilian version of the Swedish-designed Saab Gripen E multirole fighter, designated F-39 in Brazilian service. Brazil now assembles the aircraft domestically and unveiled its first nationally built example in March 2026.

Why did the Salitre deployment matter?

It was the first time the Brazilian Gripen operated outside Brazil, integrating into a multinational force under another country’s command. That tests the aircraft and its support chain in a way that home exercises cannot, which is central to Brazil’s export ambitions.

Which countries fly the Gripen in South America?

Brazil and Colombia have both selected the Gripen E. Peru considered it before choosing the American F-16, leaving Brazil and Colombia as the region’s main operators of the Swedish-designed jet.