The first Gripen E fighter to have been produced for Brazil completed a 65min flight debut from Saab’s Linkoping site in Sweden on 26 August.
Performed by company test pilot Richard Ljungberg, the milestone sortie “included test points to verify basic handling and flying qualities at different altitudes and speeds”, the airframer says.
Saab
Test aircraft 39-6001 also is the first Gripen to be flown with a new cockpit layout, featuring a wide area display, plus two small head-down displays and a new head-up display. The asset also has been equipped with updated flight control laws, Saab says.
Already sporting air force markings, a Brazilian flag tail livery and with the customer number 4100, the aircraft “will now join the test programme for further envelope expansion, as well as testing of tactical system and sensors”, Saab says. The company has previously flown three test examples of the Gripen E.
Brazil will receive 28 single-seat Gripen Es and eight two-seat F-model examples, and will operate the type under the local designation F-39. It will join the Swedish air force in fielding the type, with Stockholm having ordered 60.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
