On Tuesday, July 21, 2026, the second day of the Farnborough International Airshow 2026 in the United Kingdom, Sweden’s Saab Defence and Security and Brazil’s Embraer (Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica) signed a Heads of Agreement to deepen their cooperation on the JAS 39E/F Gripen multirole fighter. Under the agreement, 20 additional aircraft will be produced at the Gavião Peixoto facility in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. The two companies intend to sign the corresponding implementation agreement later in 2026.
Photos and image: Embraer
Embraer will assume responsibility for assembling the additional Gripen aircraft, complementing Saab’s final assembly line in Linköping, Sweden, to meet global demand for the Swedish fighter.
The agreement marks another milestone in the companies’ decade-long cooperation, expanding delivery capacity through a globally integrated production model while providing greater flexibility in meeting future customer requirements.
“The expansion of this partnership with Saab reflects the mutual trust built over the past ten years and reinforces Embraer’s strategic role in the Gripen programme. We are well positioned to support increased production capacity, if demand requires it,” said Bosco da Costa Junior, President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security.
“The partnership between Saab and Embraer reinforces our long-term commitment to Latin America. Together, we are strengthening our capabilities, securing additional capacity for future business opportunities, and taking a forward-leaning approach to supporting the evolving needs of our customers across the region,” said Micael Johansson, President and CEO of Saab.
Embraer’s Gavião Peixoto facility has established itself as a strategic industrial hub, known for its advanced manufacturing capabilities, skilled workforce, and production capacity. Operating within a globally integrated production model that brings together Brazilian and international suppliers, including aerostructures manufactured at Saab’s facility in São Bernardo do Campo, the site demonstrates the strength of the partnership while supporting industrial production growth and creating opportunities for the further development of high-technology aerospace programs. It is also worth noting that Saab has established the Gripen Design and Development Network and the Gripen Flight Test Center in Brazil.
After more than a decade of cooperation, the partnership between Saab and Embraer has become a strong example of innovation, industrial development, and knowledge transfer.
Through comprehensive technology transfer and on-the-job training under the current Gripen program for the Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira, FAB), engineers, test pilots, technicians, assembly operators, and in-service support specialists received training in Sweden. This cooperation has strengthened expertise and best practices on both sides and delivered lasting benefits to both companies, contributing to the development of advanced industrial capabilities and long-term growth opportunities.
Under the Brazilian Air Force’s F-X2 program, Embraer has so far been responsible for assembling 15 of the 28 ordered single-seat JAS 39E aircraft, designated F-39E, with the first unveiled on March 25 this year. Meanwhile, eight two-seat JAS 39F aircraft, designated F-39F, are being built at Saab Defence and Security’s Linköping-Vårdsberg facilities, with the prototype unveiled on March 25 this year. Brazil has so far received 11 JAS 39E aircraft manufactured in Sweden.
In 2014, Brazil ordered a total of 36 new-generation Gripen aircraft, comprising 28 F-39Es and eight F-39Fs. Under an agreement reached in November 2024, it plans to acquire eight additional aircraft under an option covering up to 72 examples.
The first aircraft were delivered to the Jaguar Squadron of the 1st Air Defence Group (1.° Grupo de Defesa Aérea), based at the Otávio Lage de Siqueira Air Base in Anápolis, near Brasília. Since February this year, the aircraft have been conducting Quick Reaction Alert missions following the recent completion of weapons-integration and aerial-refueling certification with the KC-390 Millennium.
The JAS 39E Gripen has also been selected by Sweden, which has ordered 60 JAS 39Es plus another 10 under an option, with the first three delivered and plans to order another 12; Thailand, which has ordered the first four of 12 planned aircraft; Colombia, which has ordered 17; and Ukraine, which has ordered 16, in addition to 16 older C/D aircraft to be donated by Sweden. The Gripen E/F is also currently considered a leading contender in the Philippines’ fighter competition alongside the F-16C/D Block 70/72.
The latest Gripen variants were previously offered unsuccessfully in several other foreign markets, including Peru, Canada, Finland, Indonesia, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and Switzerland. More recently, reports have emerged that Canada is considering acquiring Gripen E aircraft alongside the F-35A Lightning II.
NEWS | Embraer and @Saab Sign Agreement for production of additional 20 Gripen in Brazil. Read full news: https://t.co/Okk3KsIBFC pic.twitter.com/MWto8GCqZW
— Embraer (@embraer) July 21, 2026