7 July 2014 Saab

Defence and security company Saab and FMV have concluded missile integration firings with Gripen and the MBDA Meteor BVRAAM (Beyond Visual-Range Air-to-Air Missile). These latest firings, conducted earlier this year, further verified missile integration with Gripen and validated seeker performance and missile range. This was the last major trials task required to clear the new missile for operational service on the Gripen C/D multi-role fighter. Full Meteor capability will be delivered as part of Gripen’s latest MS20 (Materiel System 20) combat systems update for the Swedish Air Force. Once MS20 has been cleared for service Sweden, and Gripen, will have the world’s first and only functional Meteor BVRAAM capability.

In March 2014 Gripen conducted two airborne launches with MBDA’s ramjet-powered, Meteor very long-range air-to-air missile. These were the final Meteor launches before the missile is cleared for operational service with Gripen. The shots were carried out over consecutive days, on 12 and 13 March, at FMV’s Vidsel Test Range in northern Sweden. Saab performed the trials in cooperation with its customer, the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV), along with the Meteor supplier team which includes the missile prime contractor MBDA (and Saab).

Two Meteors were fired at remotely-controlled targets. The tests demonstrated missile safe separation from the aircraft and datalink functions between the aircraft and missile. The tests also validated missile performance for the customer, FMV.

Saab’s previous successful Meteor trials in Sweden had already provided software verification of the Meteor system integration. The March 2014 trials completed the full integration programme for Gripen C/D and MS20. The March firings added significant additional data to Saab’s experience in using the missile with an operational combat aircraft, experience that is unrivalled after years of development and integration trials with the Meteor.

The March 2014 trials parameters included firings at both low and high altitude and at speed while the launch aircraft was manoeuvring, as well as demonstrating a long engagement range, engagement of manoeuvring targets, aircraft/missile datalink functionality and missile seeker performance.

Since March Saab has supported further Gripen/Meteor trials work in support of the final MS20 standard, including flight qualities testing and carefree handling validation. Delivery of the final MS20 to FMV, and subsequent operational test and evaluation, will be completed by the end of this year.

“For Saab Aeronautics it has been a privilege to work together with the Meteor team during the development programme. The integration of this capability for the Swedish Air Force is a first for this kind of BVR missile. Sweden now has a head start in developing strategies to use this capability in air combat”, says Tobias Andersson, Project Manager for the Meteor integration, Saab.

Sweden is working with France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK to develop and field the Meteor BVRAAM, with MBDA acting as the programme’s prime contractor. The Meteor is a highly advanced, long-range and agile air-to-air weapon that is uniquely designed to counter the most sophisticated airborne threats of the 21st century. Full Meteor integration will be delivered to the Swedish Air Force as part of the MS20 systems update. When MS20 enters service in 2015 Gripen will be the first platform with an operationally effective Meteor capability. At that point Meteor capability also becomes available for other Gripen users. Sweden has signed a contract for delivery of serially-produced Meteor missiles in addition to the integration missiles that were used during trials.

Stockholm soupçonne le groupe allemand d’avoir racheté en 2005 les chantiers navals Kockums, ex-fleuron de la construction navale du royaume, dans l’unique but d’éliminer un concurrent - Peter Neumann/Thyssen Krupp

30/06 Bruno Trevidic - lesechos.fr

Sous la pression de Stockholm, le conglomérat allemand a vendu au groupe suédois Saab ses chantiers de construction de sous-marins en Suède.

En Suède aussi, on ne plaisante pas avec le patriotisme économique, comme l’a constaté à ses dépens ThyssenKrupp. Sous la pression du gouvernement suédois, le conglomérat allemand a dû se résoudre, dimanche soir, à vendre son chantier de construction de sous-marins en Suède au suédois Saab, pour 340 millions de couronnes suédoises. Soit seulement 37 millions d’euros pour une activité qui a généré 1,7 milliard de couronnes (185 millions d’euros) sur le dernier exercice 2012-2013 et un résultat d’exploitation de 34 millions de couronnes.

Suite de l’article

29.05.2014 Tom Scanoe.caullivan - canoe.ca

LINKÖPING - Pays pacifiste s'il en est, la Suède ne craint pas pour ses exportations d'armements après le refus exprimé récemment par les électeurs suisses au projet d'achat d'avions de combats Saab pour l'armée de la Confédération helvétique.

Dans l'usine Saab de Linköping, sous le regard attentif du chef opérateur Lars Ydreskog, les techniciens peaufinent la nouvelle chaîne d'assemblage de la prochaine génération des avions de chasse Gripen.

La Suède a déjà commandé 60 exemplaires de cette pièce maîtresse de l'industrie militaire suédoise.

Cet avion est conçu pour faire concurrence aux meilleurs appareils russes, explique M. Ydreskog à l'AFP. L'appareil est doté d'un système d'interconnexion unique permettant aux avions de communiquer et de se répartir les tâches de détection, brouillage électronique ou de tirs.

«C'est ce travail stratégique que le Brésil et la Suisse ont remarqué», note-t-il. Brasilia a choisi le Gripen face au Rafale du français Dassault-aviation et au F/A-18 Super Hornet de l'américain Boeing. Le gouvernement suisse qui avait opté pour le suédois a dû renoncer après le non de ses électeurs.

La Suède est le troisième plus gros exportateur d'armes au monde par habitant, derrière Israël et la Russie.

Avec la fin de la guerre froide, les budgets militaires ont reculé mais la Suède a vu ses exportations d'armes tripler dans les années 2000. En 2013, Saab et 60 autres entreprises d'armement, y compris Bofors et BAE Sytems, ont vendu des armes suédoises à 55 pays pour 11,9 milliards de couronnes (1,9 milliard $).

Parmi ces clients des régimes sont pointés du doigt pour leurs violations des droits de l'homme, comme l'Arabie Saoudite, les Émirats Arabes Unis ou le Pakistan.

Suite de l'article

18/05 Par Alain Ruello

Par 53,4 % des voix, les Suisses ont rejeté le projet d’achat de 22 exemplaires de l’avion de combat Gripen du suédois Saab pour 3,1 milliards de francs suisses.

Pas de nouvel appel d’offres

Geneva April 11, 2014 Spacewar.com (AFP)

Swiss voters are set to sink a massive defence deal with Swedish firm Saab to buy 22 fighter planes, an opinion poll showed Friday ahead of a referendum next month.

The survey by the gfs.bern polling institute showed that 52 percent of voters opposed the plan, while 42 percent were in favour.

With just six percent of voters still to make up their minds, a turnaround by supporters of the fighter purchase appeared unlikely, the polling institute said.

Approved by the government in 2011 and backed by parliament last September, the fighter deal cannot be blocked as such in the May 18 referendum.

But opponents have been able to contest legislation that allowed the purchase to be funded by tapping an annual 300 million Swiss francs (246 million euros, $342 million) from the neutral country's military budget over 10 years.

The Swiss defence ministry has said that in the event the people reject the financing legislation, the decision will be respected, and that there is no back-up funding plan.

Switzerland opted for Saab's Gripen jets over the Rafale made by French company Dassault and the Eurofighter of pan-European firm EADS.

Supporters underline that in exchange for the sale, Saab and its engine supplier are contractually bound to sign business deals with Swiss firms worth 2.5 billion francs over the next decade.

Opponents dismiss that, and say that the 3.1-billion-franc price tag for the jets could end up tripling because of operating and maintenance costs as well as future upgrades.

The anti-deal coalition is steered by the left-leaning Socialists and Greens, plus anti-militarists who last year lost in a referendum in which voters bucked a European trend and kept their conscript army.

The Gripen's adversaries also include economic liberals opposed to the price.

Referendums form the cornerstone of Switzerland's system of direct democracy, and the campaigners forced a plebiscite by mustering more than 65,000 signatures from voters.

The Gripens are meant to replace Switzerland's three-decade-old fleet of 54 F-5 Tigers, built by US group Northrop.

The Swiss air force also has 32 F/A 18 Super Hornets built by US company McDonnell Douglas, purchased in 1996.

The military notes that with a combined fleet of 54 Gripens and Super Hornets, Switzerland's fleet would lag far behind the 300 jets in service in the early 1990s.

14/04/14  LesEchos(Reuters)

STOCKHOLM - ThyssenKrupp a annoncé lundi la signature d'une lettre d'intention en vue de la vente de ses chantiers navals suédois au groupe de défense Saab .

Après un différend commercial, le gouvernement suédois a exclu cette année de passer de nouvelles commandes de sous-marins au groupe allemand, préférant se tourner vers Saab pour sa stratégie future.

Saab a indiqué que le rachat de ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems lui permettrait de développer ses activités navales et aiderait la Suède à atteindre ses objectifs en matière de conception, de production et d'entretien de ses sous-marins et bâtiments de guerre.

ThyssenKrupp Marine emploie environ un millier de personnes en Suède, principalement à Malmö et Karlskrona dans le sud du pays. La filiale a réalisé un chiffre d'affaires de 1,9 milliard de couronnes (210 millions d'euros) lors de l'exercice fiscal 2011/2012, selon ses comptes annuels publiés en Suède.

Saab est détenu à 30% par la firme d'investissement suédoise Investor. (Mia Shanley, Véronique Tison pour le service français)

April 7th, 2014 By Swedish Radio - defencetalk.com

The Defence Minister of Sweden, Karin Enström, Sweden, and the Defence Minister of Brazil, Celso Amorim, held an official meeting in Stockholm, upon the kind invitation of the Swedish side, on April 3rd, 2014.

The Ministers recalled the 2009 Plan of Action of the Sweden-Brazil Strategic Partnership, which early identified the potential of bilateral cooperation in the defense area, including joint projects, industrial partnerships, technology transfer, education and training, particularly in the aeronautical field.

The Defence Ministers of Brazil and Sweden welcomed the decision by the Brazilian government – taken on December 18, 2013, and based on technical criteria, in particular the ones related to technological and industrial offsets – to select the proposal presented by Swedish company SAAB in the bidding process called FX-2, related to the provision of fighters to equip the Brazilian Air Force.

The Ministers announced the opportunities for a fruitful long term association between Brazil and Sweden in the field of military aircraft, its technologies and its market.

The Ministers expressed that this association is not only limited to the equipping of the Brazilian Air Force but rather a long-term, strategic cooperation.

The Ministers of Defense of Brazil and Sweden thus decided to launch the Brazilian-Swedish Strategic Partnership in Military Aeronautics.

In that regard, the Defence Ministers of Sweden and Brazil took note of the agreements that are already in force and that offer solid base to the conformation of the Strategic Partnership in Military Aeronautics:

    the Memorandum of Understanding Brazil – Sweden on Cooperation in Defence Matters, signed in São Paulo in July 7, 2000;

    its Amendment, signed in Rio de Janeiro on 24 April 2001;

    Agreement between the Administration for Swedish Defence Material – Forsvarets Materielverk – and the Brazilian Air Force on the Protection of Military Classified Information on the JAS 39 Gripen program, adopted in September 1997 and its Supplement No. 1, adopted in 1998.

With a view to providing continuous strength to the Strategic Partnership, the Defence Ministers agreed to sign today a new Framework Agreement for Defense Cooperation between Brazil and Sweden, which shall replace, when it enters into force, the 2000 Memorandum of Understanding on Defense Cooperation.

The Ministers also saluted the signature, on the same date, of the Agreement on the Exchange and Protection of Classified Information by the Chief Minister of the Cabinet of Institutional Security of the Presidency of the Republic and the Head of Military Intelligence and Security Service of the Armed Forces of Sweden.

The Defence Ministers agreed that the next steps include:

    a deepened political dialogue on defence issues, as well as global topics of mutual interest;

    adoption of a Protocol on Cooperation in Military Aeronautics, which shall define specific terms for, among others, the bilateral cooperation between Air Forces;

    a process forward on export control to third countries; and

    creation of the Office of the Brazilian Defense and Air Force Attaché in Stockholm, in reciprocity to the creation of the Office of the Swedish Defence Attaché in Brasilia.

In reiterating their high expectations regarding the Strategic Partnership between Brazil and Sweden in Military Aeronautics, the Ministers saluted the broader bilateral cooperation in defense and military issues.

The ministers reaffirmed the intentions of their Governments to jointly explore synergies regarding the testing, training, logistics, operations and future upgrades of the Gripen system. They looked forward to the inaugural meeting of a Joint Working Group on Military Cooperation within the Framework Agreement, scheduled to meet in Brasilia in August, 2014.

With a view to following up on the bilateral cooperation agenda, the Minister of Defense of Brazil invited the Minister of Defence of Sweden to undertake a visit to Brazil in 2014.

April 4, 2014 by Craig Hoyle – FG

London - Saab has successfully test flown a key passive detection capability for its in-development Gripen E fighter, using dedicated test aircraft 39-7.

Developed by Selex ES’s Airborne & Space Systems division, the Skyward-G infrared search and track (IRST) sensor will give the combat aircraft a long-range means of detecting and identifying potential airborne threats, without the need to first switch on its active electronically scanned array radar. Secondary applications include the ability to act as a navigation and landing aid during darkness.

“The first flight in the Gripen E test aircraft with IRST has been performed with very good results,” says Hans Einerth, wing commander flying at Saab’s Linköping production and test site in Sweden. “Multiple targets were detected, tracked and identified, and the system works perfectly.”

Skyward-G comprises a sensor head unit installed in front of the fighter’s cockpit, and an associated processor unit box, which is stowed in the nose avionics bay. The entire system weighs less than 40kg (88lb), says Selex.

“The [IRST] integration and development work is progressing according to schedule,” says Saab. The company is producing three dedicated E-model test aircraft, with its current 39-7 asset being a modified D-model Gripen. The new-generation version should enter use in 2018, with operators expected to include Sweden, plus export customers Brazil and Switzerland; both have yet to finalise planned orders.

April 3, 2014 defense-aerospace.com

(Source: Radio Sweden; published April 2, 2014)

The Government Stops Planned Submarine Deal

The government puts an end to previous plans to buy two submarines from the German-owned company Kockums, Swedish Television News reports.

In the spring budget the government intends to note that the conditions are not right for a deal with the company, which is owned by the German group ThyssenKrupp.

But the government still sees a need for two new submarines to be built and two existing submarines to be modernised. The Swedish Defence Materiel Administration has already ordered a preliminary study from Saab, on whether this company could do the job instead.

According to Swedish Television News, Saab has already been recruiting submarine engineers from Kockums, while ThyssenKrupp is offering them bonuses to try to get them to stay in the company.

March 31 By Richard Tomkins (UPI)

A direct fire weapons effect simulator used by British forces is to continue to receive support from Saab under a $33.8 million contract.

Swedish defense company Saab says it has received a new contract to continue support and service of a simulator system used by the British Army.

The simulator is the Direct Fire Weapon Effects Simulator System.

The DFWES is a laser-based tactical engagement system for vehicles and anti-tank weapons to simulate the effect of weapon engagements that enables realistic and challenging training. It is used in force-on-force exercises in Britain and Canada, as well as in Germany.

Saab has supplied and operationally supported the system since 1994, the company said.

“This new contract, extending the use of the capability, is proof of the strong relationship between Saab and the British Army, and a renewal of our commitment as a highly trusted overall training provider to a leading military customer,” said Henrik Hojer, vice president and managing director of Saab’s training and simulation business.

The contract from Britain’s Ministry of Defense is worth about $33.8 million. The performance period of the contract was not disclosed.

31.03.2014 Romandie.com (ats)

Le Gripen coûterait bien plus cher que ce que le Département fédéral de la défense (DDPS) veut faire croire à la population. Forte de cet avis, l'alliance "Non aux milliards pour des avions de combat" est entrée en campagne contre l'achat de ces appareils, dont le coût d'achat est estimé à 3,1 milliards de francs.

"Ces avions de combat vont en fait engloutir 10 milliards au cours de leur durée de vie", a affirmé le conseiller national Daniel Vischer (Verts/ZH) devant la presse. "Face aux caisses vides de la Confédération, des cantons et des communes, la Suisse ne peut pas prendre un tel risque financier".

Au prix d'achat - 3,1 milliards de francs, il faut rajouter les coûts d’exploitation et d’entretien ainsi que les futures mises à niveau, a ajouté sa collègue Evi Allemann (PS/BE). Ces milliards manqueront nécessairement ailleurs, dans des domaines comme la formation, les transports publics ou encore l’AVS.

Sécurité déjà assurée

L’achat du Gripen est également très risqué, puisque l'avion commandé par la Suisse n’est pas encore développé et n’existe que sur le papier, a rappelé Amanda Gavilanes, secrétaire romande du Groupe pour une Suisse sans armée GSsA. La Suisse paie un acompte extrêmement élevé de 40% du prix d’achat, selon Evi Allemann. Si les avions n'étaient pas livrés, ou trop tard, les contribuables suisses devraient en assumer les conséquences.

Or, selon Mme Gavilanes, la sécurité aérienne de la Suisse est déjà assurée. "Les forces aériennes possèdent 32 F/A-18, à même de mener à bien leur mission pour les prochaines décennies". Environ 400 millions de francs viennent d’être investis pour leur mise à niveau.

Un quart de million pour la campagne

L’Autriche possède 15 appareils pour assurer sa mission de police du ciel, la Suisse devrait donc pouvoir assumer la sienne avec plus du double d’appareils, argumente-t-elle.

Le budget de la campagne des opposants se monte à 250'000 francs, selon IIias Panchard, co-président des Jeunes Verts Suisses. Les Suisses se prononceront le 18 mai.

28.03.2014 Romandie.com (ats)

En cas d'achat du Gripen par la Suisse, l'avionneur helvétique Pilatus vendra à l'armée suédoise une vingtaine d'avions d'entraÎnement PC-21. L'entreprise nidwaldienne et le constructeur suédois Saab ont du moins signé un accord de principe en ce sens, conditionné à un "oui" du peuple suisse à l'achat des 22 Gripen.

L'accord entre Pilatus et Saab prévoit en outre que l'assemblage d'avions Pilatus et Saab soit réalisé en Suisse sur un site encore non défini, indique vendredi le constructeur nidwaldien basé à Stans. Cette étape de construction correspondrait à une centaine de places de travail.

L'installation d'un centre de développement informatique est également prévue en Suisse en cas de feu vert du peuple au Gripen. Les deux constructeurs pourraient y développer des programmes informatiques touchant à la sécurité aérienne, ainsi que des systèmes guidés au sol.

Une telle collaboration pourrait générer des entrées de commandes pour un total d'un demi-milliard de francs en faveur de Pilatus sur les cinq à huit prochaines années. L'ensemble des achats compensatoires liés à l'acquisition du Gripen atteint 2,5 milliards de francs.