Why the World Stopped Sleeping on the Swedish Gripen Fighter
In late January, the Saab JAS-39E Gripen arrived in Finland for its flight evaluation as part of the “HX Challenge,” Finland’s search for its next fighter aircraft.
Here's What You Need to Remember: Unfortunately for Saab, the Gripen didn’t actually fly and proper “verification flights” (though the GlobalEye aircraft were able to) in its time in Finland, leading to snarky media commentary that the Gripen couldn’t fly in the snow. This is, of course, not true
In late January, the Saab JAS-39E Gripen arrived in Finland for its flight evaluation as part of the “HX Challenge,” Finland’s search for its next fighter aircraft to augment and slowly replace its fleet of F/A-18C/D Hornets. Saab’s offering, as some commentators have remarked, is the last “eurocanard” to be evaluated in the HX program. It also comes “bundled” with the GlobalEye Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) aircraft, which Saab markets as a force multiplier for the Gripen.