Editorial: Say goodbye to the Gripen

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It is often the one who has lost the most furthest to leave the game. The loss is the first true when walking. So the player bets again, to avoid facing disaster, every time just hopeful that it will finally go the way. On the sad way it continues until all funds are exhausted.


The hopeless seat reminiscent of Sweden is in when it comes JAS 39 Gripen. Although the estimated export success failed to materialize, we continue to invest in fighter aircraft, because we have already invested so very much. As long as efforts continue, one can maintain the illusion that it has been wise to invest hundreds of billions in a unique Air Force systems. In fact, it has been crazy.
Gripen project's survival has controlled the defense economic priorities, instead of Sweden's defense needs. Consequently, we have bought more planes than we need, and those we have since not been able to upgrade or even fly properly with.
, for a fighter to be competitive on the international market, it must continually evolve. It is therefore expected autumn budget include a focus on yet another new generation Gripen - the so-called Super-Jas.
defense needs them really - our plan from the previous generation works just fine for many years. But Saab needs something new to offer.
Continues Sweden with Gripen will taxpayers have to pay for ever new generation in the future. As international demand is virtually nonexistent is no one to share development costs. The failure is not due to that the Gripen is a bad plan, but mainly due to little Sweden is not particularly high on köparländernas wish list of strategic partners.
All other small-and medium-sized countries that attempted fighter production has already thrown in the towel. Sweden must do the same. After the defense existing Gripen fleet wear out, we should buy fighter aircraft from abroad. Initially, it will require some additional investment to convert our Gripen Custom defense. But in the longer term there is no doubt that the import is the only economically feasible option.
If we long to be able to afford to keep their own Air Force systems under the arms, we must either basically eliminate the rest of the defense, or shock increase funding.
, the air defense of inquiry appointed last spring was only commissioned to investigate how the needs looks after the 2040th It's easy to understand why. An investigation of how we should invest in the near future might have been landing in the displeasing, but obvious, conclusion that the proposed action "Super-Jas" should be stopped.
Sooner or later the politicians dare to face the truth. The best time is now.
By GT's editorial ledare@[email protected]


http://www.expressen.se/gt/ledare/ledare-sag-farval-till-gripen/

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"Las Malvinas fueron, son y serán Argentinas"

Some interesting points are raised.



An unavoidable war is called justice.
When brutality is the only option left,
it is holy.
Machiavelli - The Prince 1513.

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take"

I'm not American, I'm from Flanders.

Their best bet isnt to abandon the Gripen but to admit its not a fighter but a light trainer. The Gripen is in the weight class of the Yak-130/L-15/M-346. It engine outputs just 70kN more thrust than the Yak generates. Take out the radar, add a second seat and rework the avionics so you have an instructor mode, and sell it as a supersonic trainer. The Yak family in its 3 incarnations is being produced by the hundreds. Had they focused on the trainer segment and not the fighter segment the Gripen would have outsold it, but alas they didn't.

Irkut its not as simple as you want to show it is. The whole redesign and retooling
process might cost many billions, i`m not quite sure how safe it would be so make
such an investment these times with the global economy going in recession.

This would not cost billions. Its the same airframe less the radar. Stick a ballast in the nose. The only redesign would be adding software so an instructor can slave the others controls. They have a twin seater already.

Actually these days trainers also have radars.



An unavoidable war is called justice.
When brutality is the only option left,
it is holy.
Machiavelli - The Prince 1513.

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take"

I'm not American, I'm from Flanders.