The Swedish Armed Forces may acquire more Gripen E to support its existing operational capacity on account of possible lending of Gripen C/D to Brazil and Switzerland in the near future, according to Corren.se.
Earlier, the Swedish Government had planned to upgrade the existing Gripen C/D fighters to the enhanced E-model configuration for the Air Force. However, it has now decided that the acquisition process will include production of the new generation aircraft as well.
“Thanks to the increasing interest in Gripen, there is a demand for hiring more C / D aircraft. To ensure that the Swedish Armed Forces' operational capacity can be maintained during this time, we want to be able to build new components and as well as entire Gripen E,” says Sweden’s Defence Minister Karin Enstrom.