Gripen Has the Edge in War Games
In a recently published article in The Aviation Geek Club, a former Swedish Air Force Flight Engineer talks about how Gripen has the upper hand in almost any dogfight scenarios, making it a prized fighter of its Air Forces.
Stefan Englund remembers the first Gripen (Gripen A) to participate in Red Flag 2006 as part of the Red Team.
With limited AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) and ground control, Gripen still performed exceptionally well without suffering any losses or getting detected at all. He also brings to light another instance at a combat exercise with the Royal Norwegian Air Force where Gripen fighters, although only 3 in number, had a successful 3-round combat against 5 F-16 fighters.
Stefan also gives the example of Gripen’s role in the Libyan mission. “Gripen is among the most underestimated fighters flying today. During the Libyan campaign, it came in as a tactical resource, but very soon was upgraded to a strategic resource,” he says.
The Gripen-E series which has taken several leaps forward ever since, in terms of situational awareness and its unparalleled Electronic Warfare (EW) System, was developed to counter advanced and future threats. This makes Gripen E the perfect solution for countries facing more complex threats or having wider territories to secure.
According to the article, “The Gripen E-series redefines air power for the 21st century by extending operational capabilities.”
Read the full story here.