The order is worth approximately SEK 600 million





(March 30, 2010) -- Defence and security company Saab has received an order worth approximately SEK 600 million from FMV (the Swedish Defence Material Administration) for system maintenance of Gripen.

The contract represents a part of continual system maintenance and updating tasks for the Gripen and complies with the Swedish Armed Forces' long-term planning for the Gripen. The order applies to basic resources for enabling development and implementation of new material system versions for the Gripen through, for example, effective project management as well as maintaining the material prerequisites for conducting coordinated testing of the flight system. The material prerequisites include renewal of test equipment and test aircraft for testing of the Gripen system on the long term.

The order concerns operations to be carried out during 2010 and 2011, corresponding to an amount of SEK 600 million.

With acknowledgements to ASD News.

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The Swedish Air Force operates around 138 Gripen fighters.

The Swedish Krone is valued almost on a par with the SA Rand.

So it cost R600 million for two years of system maintenance, that's R300 million per year. or around R2 million per aircraft per year.

The SA Air Force is acquiring 29 Gripen fighters.

So we taxpayers can expect to pay around R60 million per year just for system maintenance.

It cost a lot more to arm and operate these 4th generation jet fighters which have in any case been superseded by 5th generation fighters such as the F-35 Lightning II and Gripen NG.

No wonder the SAAF has an operating shortfall of just R1 221 million this financial year started today.

And can only fly 250 hours flying time total for all Gripens per year. That's 10 hours each.

Some some among us say this R15 billion purchase was a bargain?

Others among us including Minister of Defence Joe Modise, his government-employed special advisor Fana Hlongwane and Richard Charter walked off with R1 200 million worth of overt and covert commissions to buy this useless rubbish. Of the R1 200 million only about R100 million was in overt commissions.

And this in 2000 money.

Remember the R5 billion worth of Hawks was only acquired in support of training for the Gripens.

And this in 1999 money.

One can more than double the Rand costs today.

And all the time the SAAF effectively had 38 almost new, zero houred at least, Cheetah C jet fighters in its underground hangars at 2 Air Force Base Hoedspruit, with plenty of spare airframes, spare engines, other spares and consumables, as well as a whole host of qualified weapon systems and ordnance.

The SAAF still has nearly all of these Cheetah Cs in its inventory, but have been grounded to make funds available to fly the Gripens and to buy German air-to-air missiles and Italian Mk-82 bombs.

This country prides itself in making air-to-air missiles and has always made a variety of both dumb and smart bombs.

What gives?