Sweden’s Gripen faces moment of truth in Ukraine’s air war with Russia

By Johan Ahlander and Simon Johnson

STOCKHOLM, June 4 (Reuters) – After Ukraine announced it would make the Gripen the backbone of its air force, the Swedish fighter jet is finally set to be tested in the role it was designed for: fighting against Russia.

Ukraine has allocated €2.5 billion of a €90 billion European Union loan to buy 20 new Gripen E fighter jets and is also set to receive 16 older models donated by Sweden, a powerful new asset for protecting Ukrainian cities.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who signed the agreement with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson at the Uppsala air base last week, said, “We need these jets, and this is really a new page for Ukraine for us.”

The deal, which could include up to 150 new aircraft, could see the Gripen take on Russian rivals within a year and offer the first real combat test for a jet long praised for its capabilities but never proven in high-intensity combat.

The Gripen first flew in 1988 and was sold to countries including Brazil and South Africa. It was conducting surveillance missions and air policing while Thai Gripens clashed with Cambodian forces.

“This will be something completely different, a test against the systems that this aircraft was actually designed to confront, namely Russia,” said Lieutenant Colonel and Swedish Defense University lecturer Johan Huovinen. he said.

“It will finally be a test of Swedish technology.”

ROBUST AND AGILE

The Gripens lack stealth capabilities and range compared to Lockheed Martin’s F-35, but they also have significant advantages. Designed to operate in a country under Russian attack, these vehicles emphasize solid reliability in harsh conditions.

Swedish air force Squadron Commander Robin ⁠Arvidsson explained how the design allows all basic maintenance to be carried out while wearing gloves.

“Small details like this are very important when you’re in the field during the winter months,” he told Reuters while his squadron was conducting NATO air policing in Iceland in March.

While aircraft like the F-35 are designed to operate from the relative safety of an air base or aircraft carrier, Gripens can take off and land on any straight path, meaning they can disperse and be more difficult to attack.

“Ukraine does not operate with solid air bases of NATO standards. We use scattered airstrips, dirt runways, highway sections, secret positions throughout the country. This is exactly what Gripen was designed for,” Oleksii Antoniuk, defense cooperation leader at the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, said in an emailed response to Reuters’ questions. he said.

“A crew of six, one trained technician and five soldiers can refuel, rearm and clear for the next mission in less than 10 minutes. No other aircraft in this class offers this combination.”

He also said the ‌Gripen, which costs $8,000 an hour to fly, operates at less than a quarter the cost of flying an F-35, a crucial difference in a long-running war of attrition.

He added that “Meteor” air-to-air missiles are well suited to force Russia to fly its warplanes farther from the front, reducing the effectiveness of air-launched glider bombs, which have become one of Moscow’s main offensive weapons.

DISADVANTAGES

Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow in air power and technology at the Royal United Services Institute in London, said the Gripen is perfect for dispersed operations and the right choice for Ukraine, but there are limits to what it can achieve.

“It’s not going to have a transformative impact in terms of the Ukrainian Air Force’s ability to somehow establish total air superiority, because Russia’s air defense network on the ground… is still formidable,” he said.

He added that the lack of stealth capability and lighter weapon loadout could also lead to disadvantages.

Production is another challenge.

Saab had an order for 117 Gripen E fighter jets before Ukraine said it wanted 20. The company is currently able to produce around 15 aircraft per year in Sweden and aims to increase this figure to 20 to 30.

The company has an additional production line in Brazil. But even taking this into account, experts say that it is difficult to increase the production of such technologically advanced products, but Saab is confident in the prospects.

In his statement to Reuters, Saab CEO Micael Johansson said, “We started investments a long time ago,” adding that cooperation with Ukraine on repairs, overhauls and spare parts was being evaluated and that local production could be made in the future.

“Over time, with a big partner like Ukraine, this can definitely happen.”

SALES POTENTIAL

The Swedish taxpayer-financed Gripen’s infancy was not without its problems; It faced criticism for cost overruns and premature collapses. It was dubbed “the world’s most expensive topsoil tillage machine” by the Swedish media after a televised accident in 1989 in which it left the tarmac and rolled violently across the dirt.

“We didn’t fully understand the benefits at the time,” Huovinen said. “But today it looks like an investment that can provide jobs and strong returns.”

Saab, whose shares have gained more than 850% since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, is currently looking for more potential sales; Canada is one of the countries considering Gripen.

“This agreement is a milestone that will lead to more countries not only purchasing Gripen but also seeing Sweden as a competitive supplier of advanced systems,” Defense Minister Pal Jonson told Reuters.

(Reporting by Johan Ahlander and Simon Johnson in Stockholm and Max Hunder in Kiev. Editing by Niklas Pollard)