Embraer’s plant in Gavião Peixoto will receive components imported from Sweden in the coming days to finalize the assembly of the first F-39E Gripen fighter for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) in Brazil.
According to a statement, Saab confirmed that it sent four aerostructures of the Gripen to Brazil in February, including the wing, front, center and rear fuselages. The parts were produced at the Swedish company’s headquarters in Linköping.
Follow ADN: Facebook | Twitter
“The parts will be assembled at the Embraer factory, which will start operating at the end of April. Embraer will carry out the final assembly of 15 Gripen aircraft as part of the technology transfer in the agreement for 36 aircraft,” said Saab.
It will be Embraer’s first experience in building a supersonic aircraft. The planemaker, however, has not yet released forecasts about the delivery date of the first Gripen assembled on Brazilian soil to the FAB.
The Air Force has already received five F-39E, as the fighter was designated, and which was introduced into service in December 2022. All these aircraft, however, came by ship from Sweden to Brazil already assembled and previously tested.
In 2023, the Air Force is expected to receive five more fighters from Saab.
In addition to the 36 Gripen E/F of the order closed in 2014, last year the FAB confirmed the purchase of four more aircraft.
At the time of the announcement, the then Commander of the Air Force, Brigadier Carlos de Almeida Baptista Junior also declared that the service was negotiating the acquisition of a second batch with 30 more fighters.
For the time being, the only customers for the new Gripen E/F are the Brazilian Air Force and the Swedish Air Force, which has ordered 60 aircraft.
