The Swedish government o??er to supply Saab JAS 39 Gripen multi-role ?ighters (MR?) to the Philippines was among the key topics discussed by Department o? National De?ense (DND) o??icer-in-charge Jose ?austino Jr. and Swedish Ambassador to Manila Annika Thunborg in a recent meeting. The Gripen is one o? the two jet ?ighters eyed by the Philippine Air ?orce (PA?) to ?ul?ill its Multi-role ?ighter (MR?) requirement. Thunborg paid a courtesy call on ?austino at Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on December 21 to discuss mutual interests in the ?ield o? de?ense. The requirements ?or the MR? project stipulate that the o??ered aircra?t must be “?ourth generation or higher.
The MR? project is supposed to be part o? Horizon 2 o? the A?P Modernization Program slated ?or 2018 to 2022, which aims to acquire more equipment ?or external de?ense. The project also requires 12 MR?s at least capable o? patrolling the country’s protected waters and airspace. The MR?s are expected to backstop the military’s existing ?leet o? 12 South Korean-made Mach 1.5-capable ?A-50PH lightweight jet ?ighters. Another contender in the PA?’s MR? acquisition program is the Lockheed Martin ?-16V “Viper” jet ?ighter. Any aircra?t that will be selected must be able to integrate with existing radar systems that have a range o? about 250 nautical miles.
“The OIC, DND and the Swedish Ambassador discussed the PA? MR? Acquisition Project and the o??er o? Swedish de?ense and aerospace company Saab AB o? Gripen aircra?t, which has been on the PA?’s shortlist. Both o??icials stressed on the importance o? building a strong air de?ense. Relatedly, the OIC, DND underscored the need to improve capabilities in the context o? regional security developments, mentioning the shi?t in ?ocus o? the Philippine de?ense sector ?rom internal security to external de?ense. The Swedish Government to enter into discussions on an agreement on cooperation on de?ense materiel, as earlier proposed by the Philippine side,” Andolong said.
The Saab JAS 39 Gripen is a light single-engine multirole ?ighter aircra?t manu?actured by the Swedish aerospace and de?ense company Saab AB. In September 2016, Saab announced its intention to open an o??ice in Manila to support its campaign to sell the Gripen to ?ill the Philippine Air ?orce’s requirement ?or 12 multirole ?ighters; Saab also intends to o??er ground in?rastructure, integrated C2 systems and datalinks, similar to the capabilities o? the Royal Thai Air ?orce. According to Swedish newspaper a?tonbladet swedish ISP exportkontrollradet (Export Control Council) have ruled in November 2022 to approve export to the Philippines
