Another shipment of Saab F-39 Gripen fighters from the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) is already on its way to Brazil. The two aircraft left Sweden aboard a Dutch ship at the beginning of the week, and are expected to arrive in the country in mid-December.

The fighters registration FAB 4107 and 4108 are, respectively, the eighth and ninth units of 40 aircraft (36 of the original order plus four additional) acquired by the air force. According to the shipping tracking website MarineTraffic, the cargo ship Florijngracht left the port of Norrköping last Monday (20). The ship is expected to arrive at the Port of Navegantes, in Santa Catarina, on December 12th. 

As explained previously, logistics must follow the same pattern as the last operations. The planes will be unloaded at the port on the north coast of Santa Catarina and from there they will be towed – at night – to Vitor Konder Airport, approximately 2 kilometers from the port terminal. At the aerodrome, the planes receive their ejection seats and undergo ground tests before takeoff to Anápolis Air Base (GO). 

According to the portal Aviation in Floripa, the FAB should receive two more shipments of F-39E by sea. Fifteen aircraft will be produced in Brazil on the assembly line installed at Embraer.

It is not yet known whether the eight two-seat F-39Fs, acquired exclusively by the FAB, will be brought to the country by sea. It is also unknown whether the F-39s that are already on the way have received the aerodynamic modifications that improve Gripen’s flight performance. 

In total, seven Gripens are already in Brazil. The first aircraft, the F-39 4100, arrived in the country in 2020 and is used for testing and development, like in the hot weather rehearsal campaign. The remaining aircraft (4101, 02, 03, 04, 05 and 06) were all delivered between April 2022 and May 2023 and operate with the 1st Air Defense Group, the Jaguar Squadron, in Anápolis. 

The contract signed between Brazil and Sweden in 2014 also includes the production of the F-39 at Embraer, as part of the technology transfer agreement. In addition to the parts manufactured in the country, Saab has already sent a kit of components including parts of the wings, fuselage and tooling for assembling the plane. A assembly line opened in May this year. 

According to the latest schedule released by the Air Force, the aircraft must all be delivered by 2027.