In an unexpected move, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) would be in talks with the US government to acquire 24 second-hand F-16 fighters, Janes said.
The renowned outlet revealed that it had obtained the information from a ranking official at the beginning of the month.
The FAB is in the midst of delivering 36 new Saab Gripen E/F fighters, which are being partially assembled in Brazil in a partnership with Embraer.
Until then, the Brazilian government was talking about acquiring a second batch of Gripen, but according to the Janes source, insufficient funds would have led the Ministry of Defense to look for a cheaper alternative to replace the F-5 fighters and A-1 attack jets. (AMX).
In a statement released on Friday, the Air Force acknowledged that it is indeed studying a possible acquisition of Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters, but said that there are no ongoing negotiations.
Neighbor Argentina a few weeks ago reached a similar agreement with Denmark to buy 24 F-16s that are being removed from service and replaced by the F-35.
The negotiation, allowed by the United States, was valued at US$300 million, therefore, a much smaller amount than the US$5.4 billion contract for 36 Gripen signed by Brazil in 2014.
Although not as advanced as Saab’s fighter, the F-16 is a combat aircraft widely used around the world and quite versatile. It is equipped with a General Electric engine, the F110, from versions C and D onwards, while the Gripen is powered by a GE F414 made under license.
Mutual agreement with Sweden for the C-390?
The possible probe into F-16s by the Brazilian Air Force appears as a complication for a potential mutual agreement with Sweden regarding Embraer’s C-390 Millennium airlifter.
Since 2023, Saab and Embraer have partnered to offer the tactical transport aircraft to the Swedish Air Force, as a replacement for the C-130H Hercules.
As compensation, the FAB would close the purchase of the second batch of Gripen with Saab.
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Although the Brazilian Air Force has a tradition of operating two types of fighters, the investment in Gripen sounded like a choice for a single fleet, but much more capable as the Swedish aircraft has great capabilities in both air defense and attack missions.
One hypothesis to be considered is that the “leak” of supposed interest in the F-16 could be a way of pressuring the Swedish government to offer more advantageous conditions for the sale of the Gripen.
The FAB also insisted that the F-16 probe is unrelated to the Gripen, but obviously a fleet of a few dozen of the US fighter would make the need for the Saab jet less urgent.
Among the European fighters that emerged in the 1980s, the Gripen has been the least successful, with only four countries acquiring the aircraft (South Africa, Thailand, Brazil and obviously Sweden) and two nations operating squadrons through leasing, Hungary and the Czech Republic, which in this case will replace them with the F-35.
Meanwhile, the Dassault Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon have more operators and larger fleets.
In any case, the Brazilian Air Force intends to make a decision by the end of the year, according to the Janes source. The service has plans to retire the AMXs by 2025 and the F-5s by 2029.
