SpArK
ELITE MEMBER
- Joined
- May 5, 2010
- Messages
- 22,519
- Reaction score
- 18
- Country
- Location
Saab Courts Asia, Eastern Europe to Save Gripen Warplane
Saab AB is stepping up a campaign to sell its Gripen warplane in Asia and eastern Europe as Switzerlands decision to delay a $1 billion fighter purchase threatens to curtail production of the 1,320 mile-per-hour jet.
Orders from Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia and a follow-on contract from Thailand are major near-term opportunities for the Gripen, which competes with models from Lockheed Martin Corp., Boeing Co., Dassault Aviation SA and Eurofighter GmbH, Saab Aeronautics chief Lennart Sindahl said in an interview.
Switzerland will wait until 2015 before awarding a contract to replace ageing Northrop F-5 Tigers, its defense ministry said on Aug. 25, halting a tender regarded as key to the Gripens future by analysts including Teal Groups Richard Aboulafia. Saab is still betting on orders from Brazil and India to save the flagship fighter as the production backlog shrinks, with Malaysia another prospect, Hakan Buskhe, the companys new chief executive officer, said in his first interview in the role.
We were a little bit sad that the Swiss postponed, but there was a tricky situation with the financing and I wasnt totally surprised, Sindahl said by telephone yesterday. The good thing is that we havent lost the contract.
Saab rose as much as 2 percent and was up 1.8 percent at 95.20 kronor as of 10:17 a.m. in Stockholm, where the company is based, paring the stocks decline this year to 19 percent.
Dwindling Wordload
The Swedish manufacturer, which is competing with Dassault and Eurofighter in Switzerland, requires new orders as work on 26 Gripens for South Africa and an initial six planes for Thailand runs out in 2012, with an upgraded version not due to enter service with Swedens air force until at least 2017.
Saab also needs export orders to establish the Gripen as the model of choice in former Soviet and non-aligned markets not dominated by Boeing and Lockheed Martin, which is grabbing contracts with its F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter.
Saabs ability to offer the Gripen with in-house radar technology is being pitched as an advantage over rival planes and helped it win the existing Thai order, Sindahl said.
The Scandinavian company views Brazils requirement for 36 jets as a live competition even after President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva indicated last year that he favored the Dassault Rafale, Sindahl said, with no contract for the order yet signed.
Factory Offer
In order to boost its chances of winning the $1.8 billion deal Saab has offered to establish joint manufacturing of the Gripen in Brazil, which currently operates Dassaults Mirage.
Every day that nothing new comes from Brazil I think we have gained a little bit, Sindahl said. The longer it takes, the more discussions there are and the more they start realizing how good the offer is both with respect to the product and also to the package for Brazilian industry.
South Americas biggest economy is unlikely to choose between the Gripen, Rafale and Boeing Co. F/A-18 Super Hornet before a presidential election in October, the executive said.
India may announce the preferred supplier for a 126-plane requirement by the end of this year after scrapping an April 27 deadline to select a replacement for Russian-built MiG jets dating to the 1970s, Sindahl said.
The $10 billion order is the worlds biggest fighter-jet purchase in 15 years and has attracted bids from Lockheed, Boeing, Dassault, Eurofighter and Russias United Aircraft Corp.
Saab hasnt given up on winning Dutch and Danish orders for the Gripen, CEO Buskhe said at the companys Stockholm offices yesterday. The Netherlands has selected Lockheeds F-35 as its preferred candidate and like Denmark is one of eight partner countries with the U.S. in developing the plane.
Saab is also pursuing a contract to provide day-to-day maintenance for Swedish air force Gripens that could be sealed this year or early in 2011, Sindahl said. An agreement would mirror one to maintain Swedens Saab 105 jet trainers.
Saab Courts Asia, Eastern Europe to Save Gripen Warplane - Bloomberg
Saab AB is stepping up a campaign to sell its Gripen warplane in Asia and eastern Europe as Switzerlands decision to delay a $1 billion fighter purchase threatens to curtail production of the 1,320 mile-per-hour jet.
Orders from Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia and a follow-on contract from Thailand are major near-term opportunities for the Gripen, which competes with models from Lockheed Martin Corp., Boeing Co., Dassault Aviation SA and Eurofighter GmbH, Saab Aeronautics chief Lennart Sindahl said in an interview.
Switzerland will wait until 2015 before awarding a contract to replace ageing Northrop F-5 Tigers, its defense ministry said on Aug. 25, halting a tender regarded as key to the Gripens future by analysts including Teal Groups Richard Aboulafia. Saab is still betting on orders from Brazil and India to save the flagship fighter as the production backlog shrinks, with Malaysia another prospect, Hakan Buskhe, the companys new chief executive officer, said in his first interview in the role.
We were a little bit sad that the Swiss postponed, but there was a tricky situation with the financing and I wasnt totally surprised, Sindahl said by telephone yesterday. The good thing is that we havent lost the contract.
Saab rose as much as 2 percent and was up 1.8 percent at 95.20 kronor as of 10:17 a.m. in Stockholm, where the company is based, paring the stocks decline this year to 19 percent.
Dwindling Wordload
The Swedish manufacturer, which is competing with Dassault and Eurofighter in Switzerland, requires new orders as work on 26 Gripens for South Africa and an initial six planes for Thailand runs out in 2012, with an upgraded version not due to enter service with Swedens air force until at least 2017.
Saab also needs export orders to establish the Gripen as the model of choice in former Soviet and non-aligned markets not dominated by Boeing and Lockheed Martin, which is grabbing contracts with its F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter.
Saabs ability to offer the Gripen with in-house radar technology is being pitched as an advantage over rival planes and helped it win the existing Thai order, Sindahl said.
The Scandinavian company views Brazils requirement for 36 jets as a live competition even after President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva indicated last year that he favored the Dassault Rafale, Sindahl said, with no contract for the order yet signed.
Factory Offer
In order to boost its chances of winning the $1.8 billion deal Saab has offered to establish joint manufacturing of the Gripen in Brazil, which currently operates Dassaults Mirage.
Every day that nothing new comes from Brazil I think we have gained a little bit, Sindahl said. The longer it takes, the more discussions there are and the more they start realizing how good the offer is both with respect to the product and also to the package for Brazilian industry.
South Americas biggest economy is unlikely to choose between the Gripen, Rafale and Boeing Co. F/A-18 Super Hornet before a presidential election in October, the executive said.
India may announce the preferred supplier for a 126-plane requirement by the end of this year after scrapping an April 27 deadline to select a replacement for Russian-built MiG jets dating to the 1970s, Sindahl said.
The $10 billion order is the worlds biggest fighter-jet purchase in 15 years and has attracted bids from Lockheed, Boeing, Dassault, Eurofighter and Russias United Aircraft Corp.
Saab hasnt given up on winning Dutch and Danish orders for the Gripen, CEO Buskhe said at the companys Stockholm offices yesterday. The Netherlands has selected Lockheeds F-35 as its preferred candidate and like Denmark is one of eight partner countries with the U.S. in developing the plane.
Saab is also pursuing a contract to provide day-to-day maintenance for Swedish air force Gripens that could be sealed this year or early in 2011, Sindahl said. An agreement would mirror one to maintain Swedens Saab 105 jet trainers.
Saab Courts Asia, Eastern Europe to Save Gripen Warplane - Bloomberg
