Saab hopeful of bagging India's order for Gripen E fighter

Swedish defence major Saab on Tuesday exuded confidence of winning an order from India for its single-engine fighter jet Gripen-E, saying it offers a roadmap for affordable air power among many other factors.

Saab was the only company in the world which has the potential of upgrading the fighter jet and believed India wants Gripen-like aircraft, its Vice-President (Industrial Partnerships Business Area Aeronautics) Mats Palmberg told reporters here.

"We are confident that we would be able to win order from the Indian government for Gripen E as it offers a roadmap for affordable air power, which sets it apart from any competitor," Palmberg, who is here in connection with the Aero India show beginning Wednesday, said.

 

Besides Saab, US defence major Lockheed Martin has emerged as a major contender for the multi-billion dollar contract to supply a fleet of the single engine combat aircraft to Indian Air Force.

In September, 2017 Saab and the Adani Group had announced a collaboration in defence manufacturing entailing billions of dollars of investment and said the joint venture would produce Gripen military jets in India if it wins the single-engine aircraft deal.

The Gripen-E, an advanced version of the Gripen C/D, is a light single-engine multirole fighter aircraft fitted with advanced avionics.

Asked to comment on the issue of full transfer of technology (ToT) becoming a stumbling block for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) under the Strategic Partnership policy of India, Plamsberg said his company had been communicating to the Indian government that it would abide by the terms underlining the policy.

The company would undertake transfer of technology to the chosen partners, he added.

On whether it was willing to go for 100 per cent transfer of technology on Gripen E, Palmsberg said Saab was fully committed to ToT.

Replying to a query, Palmsberg said Gripen was not flying at Aero India because of "delay" in finalising the venue.