While the Portuguese Air Force evaluates candidates to replace its current fleet of F-16 fighter jets, the Swedish company Saab is seeking to position and promote its Gripen E through a proposal for local production, particularly through cooperation with the Portuguese company OGMA. According to reports from local media, the two companies have already signed a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at outlining an agreement similar to the one previously reached with Embraer (which is the majority shareholder of OGMA) for the aircraft selected by the Brazilian Air Force. This would allow Lisbon to involve a broad chain of local industrial actors in the process.
In this regard, although a formal procurement process has not yet begun, Swedish company officials have already stated that the Gripen E would be an “excellent product” to equip the Portuguese Air Force, adding that the service is already familiar with the company’s reliability as it currently operates other Saab-manufactured systems. One of these officials was Gripen business vice president Daniel Boestad, who stated that although Lisbon has yet to make a final decision, his company is ready to allow domestic production of the aircraft. In his own words: “OGMA has great potential to produce the Gripen.”
At this point it should be noted that it is still unknown how many fighter jets the Portuguese Air Force will ultimately purchase and, if so, with what types of weapons and integrated systems. In this regard, Boestad noted that it would currently be impossible to determine how much Portugal would need to invest if it decided to acquire the Gripen E, although he pointed to the cases of Thailand and Brazil. In the first case, it should be recalled that in August 2025 the purchase of four aircraft was confirmed for approximately €495 million, while in the second case Brazil acquired 36 aircraft for around €3.87 billion.
Defending the qualities of the Gripen E as a fighter aircraft for Portugal, Boestad stated: “It is a completely different aircraft, one of the most important and modern. I’m not referring only to flying fast or turning quickly, but to the ability to adopt new technologies (…) The speed of change, the speed of adaptation, is key for the future. That was the main factor when designing this aircraft. We designed the Gripen’s computer systems in a completely different way from other aircraft in order to implement these changes very quickly.”
This aspect is particularly important in Saab’s analysis when promoting its combat aircraft, especially in comparison with its American competitors, namely the stealth F-35 fighter jets. According to the executive, there is a key difference in that the customer could specify what type of software programs they want to incorporate into the fighter, and within a very short period engineers could make the necessary changes so that they become available within days rather than months or years.
The F-35 candidacy as an alternative
Amid Saab’s efforts to promote the Gripen E as the future fighter aircraft of the Portuguese Air Force, it is important to remember that Lockheed Martin has been doing the same with its F-35, benefiting from strong support from Washington to exert greater pressure on Lisbon when the decision is made. As previously reported, the arrival of this platform would be viewed positively since it would allow Portugal to match capabilities with many European countries that have selected it as their future fighter, opening the door to greater interoperability and facilitating potential future processes to incorporate a sixth-generation aircraft.
However, the American stealth fighter also faces several obstacles that have already been pointed out by Portuguese military authorities, some of them beyond purely technical or economic considerations. As we reported last December, General Cartaxo Alves, Chief of Staff of the Portuguese Air Force, stated in an interview that delivery timelines would be long if the F-35 were selected, while the costs associated with its acquisition and operation would be significantly higher than those of the Swedish contender.
This would undoubtedly affect the number of aircraft that could ultimately be purchased, as well as their future operational role, limiting the force’s capabilities to fulfill its missions. During the interview, General Alves did not confirm the number of aircraft that would be acquired, but mentioned a range of between 14 and 28 units, which according to his estimates would require an investment of between €3 billion and €4.8 billion, still below the €5 billion that the government was willing to allocate for the program.
A third contender: the Eurofighter Typhoon
In addition to what appear to be the strong candidacies of the Gripen and the F-35, Portugal is also considering the possibility of acquiring a third model: the Eurofighter Typhoon promoted by Airbus. By late October last year, the company revealed that a Memorandum of Understanding had been signed with the Portuguese Aeronautics, Space and Defence Industries Cluster (AED Cluster Portugal) in order to advance its own proposal, stating that it was ready to begin the necessary studies to outline a plan that would also include the participation of local companies in the aircraft’s production.
At that time, the Eurofighter consortium sought to capitalize on the momentum generated by Germany’s acquisition of 20 additional aircraft, as well as those included in Spain’s Halcón I and Halcón II programs, corresponding to the Tranche 4 and 5 variants of the platform. In addition, a new export success had been achieved outside the core group of European nations that originally developed the aircraft, with the sale of 20 units to Turkey by the United Kingdom following a visit by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to the city of Ankara.
Images used for illustrative purposes.
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