New Brazilian Air Force fighter jets ready to ship to Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The first two Gripen F-39E fighter jets for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) are already in the Swedish port city of Norrköping to be shipped to Brazil.

In pictures published by the portal Wighsnews, it is possible to see the movement and preparation of the two fighters (FAB 4101 and 4102).

According to the contract, the aircraft will be sent to Brazil by sea. It has already happened with the first FAB 4100 that arrived in the country in 2020 through the port of Navegantes (Santa Catarina). The FAB 4100 aircraft is in the middle of a flight test campaign in Gavião Peixoto (São Paulo).

FAB officially received the first four series-built units of the Gripen F-39E in November 2021. The fighters were formally delivered to the Air Force Commander, Lieutenant Brigadier Baptista Junior, at Saab’s factory in Linköping, in the Nordic country.

The shipment of the FAB 4103 and 4104 aircraft should take place in the first half of this year, as planned.

In 2014 a contract was signed to acquire 36 units of the Gripen E/F, with 28 copies of the E version (single-seater) and eight of the F version (two-seater). The aircraft were designated in the air force as F-39E/F, following the nomenclature adopted historically by the FAB and based on the North American standard.

One of the key points of the contract is technology transfer, which means that Brazil is participating in the development and construction of the planes. FAB and national companies sent to Sweden pilots, technicians, and engineers, who work through a process of “learning by doing”, who can have direct access to technologies in an applied way.

In Brazil, Saab has an industrial plant in São Bernardo do Campo, in the metropolitan region of São Paulo City, where it builds vital aircraft components.

According to the contract, part of the systems and structures will be produced in Brazil, with some components finalized by Embraer and Saab. Others will be jointly assembled at the Gavião Peixoto site in the interior of São Paulo State, where part of the F-39E will be assembled. The eight Gripen F’s will be developed by Brazilian engineers and completely produced in the country.

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