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via UPI.com
Saab is one of the three leading contenders for Brazil's jet fighter replacement program FX-2, the other two contenders being Boeing and France's Dassault.SAAB is hungry.
According to the report, Saab aims to compete successfully for a role not just in the Brazilian air force, but also in the Brazilian Navy and hence it is seriously concentrating on its Sea Gripen project. Commander Romulo Sobral recently flew the Gripen D to test if it has flight qualities compatible with the flying qualities desirable for naval aircraft based on aircraft carriers.
Brazil's FX-2 jet fighter acquisition program coincides with a vigorous campaign by the government and local defense industry to develop indigenous aviation industry.
SAAB is borderline desperate...lets call it extremely determined to sell its airplanes. Honestly I wonder how SAAB can be denied. If its a price war then they're going to win going away. If its a tech battle then the SAAB at the very least matches what the other two planes offer.
Is it all about production offsets? If it is then I don't know who will win. From my reading almost all the corporations involved with give Rio a slice of the pie. I guess it'll come down to "best value considerations"....and that type criteria is always hard to determine ahead of time.
I honestly think Sweden, Brazil and Turkey will develop a new plane. Brazil and Turkey are growing economically soon to be become regional powers if not already. Turkey has already teamed up with SAAB in development of a fifth generation fighter in which conceptual designs were shown at IDEF13, now Turkey will consider the feasibility studies conducted. If accepted by Turkish government they will look to plan funding for the project aswell as partners to share the risk with. Brazil might just be that country.
ReplyDeleteI think at any given point, Saab, Dassault (Rafale), and Boeing (Rhino), have all been declared winners, only to have the Brazilian government back off in an attempt to get a better deal. All three manufacturers are depending on new sales to keep in the fighter business, but Dassault has the recent Indian MRCA at least.
ReplyDeleteThe Gripen is a strong value proposition, with a low operating cost, and the E/F versions (NG) look even better with all the improvements to sensors, avionics, power, and range. The Rhino and Rafale are already carrier-ready, however. Boeing probably has the greatest lobbyists/bribery budget, but the Super Hornet undoubtedly comes with a few strings attached (technology restrictions, etc) via the U.S. Govt.
I think the Gripen is the one to watch however. It's cheap, boasts low operating costs, and doesn't have the controversy of the F-35. For those countries unable, or unwilling to procure the JSF, it may be a natural choice. In many ways, the Gripen is closer to the F-16 philosophy than the F-35 is.
Then again, I'm sure China would love to start selling it Chengdu J-10B... Which in my opinion is going to be the MiG-21 of the 21st century.
i once thought the same thing about the J-10 but they're having a real hard time getting it into service. looking at what India is doing i'm beginning to think we're seeing the rebirth of the Mig-29.
DeleteThe problem with the J-10 and all other chinese planes is engines. China is behind pretty much everyone else when it comes to engines and no one wants to work with them on developing that capability.
DeleteI agree that one of China's greatest weakness in aviation engineering are the engines and metallurgy, however, there are some ways around it.
DeleteChina sells their engines cheap. Very cheap. Instead of three engine units per a/c, you can afford to get more. If China is desperate for a sale in that part of the country, they might throw it in for free. Question is: How fast can you do a full engine swap?
Next, China recently signed a deal with Moscow and for 24 Su-24 (or was it Su-35, can't remember). This includes the engines that China has been dreaming of. China will be able to reverse-engineer that engine and out on their showroom in less than two years.
If the Chinese could reverse engineer the engines, they'd have done it on the SU-27s/J-11s. They can't. Yes, they have their own engines, but they aren't as reliable as the Russians and certainly not as reliable as Western engines.
DeleteIt is their weakest link at this point (apart from being a closed, autocratic system) and until it is remedied, they are strategically vulnerable.
That goes double for the Indians whose defense industry is pathetic.
China already has planes with engines much more advances than those they can make. It isn't easy to reverse engineer an engine as having an actual engine tells you almost nothing on how to build it(well except for the geometry of the combustor). They also have advanced western engine from RR and GE.
DeleteThe reality with engines is that it is the complex computation models for the actual operation of the engine along with the advanced materials and part manufacturing that are the secrets behind the advanced western and less advanced Russian engines that china is no where close to copying. Even among GE and RR, they design their engines very differently based on their proprietary knowledge and capabilities. RR has a significant advantage in 3 spool engine design and GE has a significant advantage in materials and cooling.
And it isn't just a matter of selling 3 cheap engines vs 1 expensive engine. Using more engines has real cost in weight, SFC, and reliability. China has to sell their engines cheap because they are basically junk. There are literally thousands of better engines sitting in graveyards in the US desert. So, you really cannot offset bad engines by just using or selling more. And a full engine swap on a military aircraft isn't quick.
For the Indians, they have a very close working relationship with Russia to the point that they actually do a lot of co-development work with/on many advanced Russian designs.
If it wasn't for all the used F-16s, the Gripen would be a much more successful aircraft.
ReplyDeletethe only question is that not just who can give Brazil a share of pie, but who can partner with and build a Brazilian aircraft industry. That would be a company that could end up being a rival to a Boeing or a Dassault.
SAAB, on the other hand, is limping along and needs a partner and therefore is in a more willing position to partner up with Embraer. And with Embraer and SAAB competing in the civilian regional jet area, it might make sense to buddy up.
Embraer-SAAB hi-lo mix of Gripens and Super Tucano, supported by a Ericsson Erieye with KC-390s AWACS.
Sweden is hampered by it's neutrality laws, but partnering up with Brazilian defense contractors might be a away around it. Swedish defense technology, Brazilian manufacturing, etc., etc.
Bofors-Avibras artillery and rockets anyone?