By Brazil Stock Guide — Embraer and Sweden’s Saab have completed the maiden flight of the first Gripen E fighter jet manufactured in Brazil, marking a major milestone in the country’s efforts to build domestic capabilities in advanced combat aircraft production.
The aircraft took off from Embraer’s facilities in Gavião Peixoto, São Paulo state, on Wednesday for a flight aimed at checking key systems and validating its flight characteristics. The mission was flown by a Saab test pilot.
The fighter is the first of 15 Gripen aircraft due to be produced in Brazil under the current program. Gavião Peixoto hosts Saab’s only Gripen production line outside Sweden and has become part of the Swedish defense group’s global manufacturing and supply network.
The milestone is particularly significant for Embraer because it demonstrates that technology transferred under the Gripen program has moved beyond engineering cooperation into the ability to manufacture, integrate and test a modern combat aircraft in Brazil.
“This flight of the first Gripen E produced by Embraer in Brazil is a historic milestone for the country’s aerospace and defense industry,” said Bosco da Costa Junior, chief executive of Embraer Defense & Security.
Marcus Wandt, head of Saab’s Aeronautics business area, said the flight showed that Gripen production in Brazil had reached “a new level of maturity.”
The aircraft will now continue through production and acceptance flight testing. Once certified as airworthy, it is expected to be delivered to the Brazilian Air Force and transferred to Anápolis Air Base in Goiás state, home to the First Air Defense Group, which already operates the Gripen E.
Brazil signed its original Gripen contract in 2014, covering the development and production of 36 aircraft for the Brazilian Air Force: 28 single-seat Gripen E fighters and eight twin-seat Gripen F aircraft.
Deliveries began in 2020, and 10 aircraft have so far been delivered to the Brazilian Air Force, according to Embraer and Saab.
A central feature of the Brazilian program has been its technology-transfer component. Brazilian engineers, technicians and specialists have worked alongside Saab teams in areas including aircraft development, engineering, manufacturing, integration and flight testing.
The companies say that cooperation has allowed Brazil to establish permanent domestic capabilities that extend well beyond the assembly of imported aircraft.
The Brazilian production operation could also become more important as Saab seeks to increase Gripen output.
In July, Embraer and Saab signed a heads of agreement setting out the basis for expanded cooperation and negotiations over potential new contracts. The companies are discussing the possible production of 20 additional Gripen aircraft at Gavião Peixoto, with scope for further expansion.
Those aircraft could serve both the Brazilian market and potential international customers, allowing Embraer’s production capacity to complement Saab’s final assembly line in Linköping, Sweden.
The arrangement could give Brazil a larger role in Saab’s global Gripen supply chain at a time when defense spending and demand for combat aircraft are rising in several markets.
For Embraer, the program also adds a new dimension to its defense business. Best known internationally for its commercial and executive jets, the Brazilian manufacturer has increasingly sought to expand its presence in defense, including through the KC-390 military transport aircraft and partnerships with international defense groups.
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