The Swedish Defense Minister, Carl-Oskar Bohlin, was in Brazil to participate in the inauguration of the final assembly line for the Saab Gripen fighter, the first to be opened outside Swedish territory.
Bohlin was interviewed by the local newspaper O Estado de São Paulo and, among several issues addressed, commented on a possible order for the KC-390 Millenium, airlifter developed by Embraer.
The Swedish defense chief, however, ruled out any prior agreement for the Brazilian aircraft.
Days ago, the Minister of Defense of Brazil, José Múcio, stated that he would talk to his partner in order to indicate that a second batch of Gripen fighters by the Brazilian Air Force may involve the sale of the KC-390 to Sweden.
Sweden intends to replace its aging Lockheed C-130H Hercules of which it operates six aircraft. In March, the Air Force abandoned the plan to acquire two C-130J Super Hercules from Italy, announced in June 2022.
According to the Swedish budget report, the acquisition of transport planes needs to be “reassessed”.
Carl-Oskar Bohlin, who took over in October last year, reiterated that the process of choosing a replacement for the C-130 is still in the early stages.
Follow ADN: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
“We haven’t made any decisions yet, but one of the options we are considering is the KC-390,” he said, but without estimating how many planes will be ordered and when Sweden intends to end the process.
