The JAS 39 Gripen Story
The Gripen was developed to replace aging Draken and Viggen aircraft. The Swedes wanted a new jet that could hit Mach 2, take-off from short runways, and that would be smaller than the Viggen while carrying a higher payload. Foreign aircraft were considered as replacements, including the F-16, the F/A-18, the F-20, and the Mirage 2000, before Saab was chosen to create a brand-new airframe.
For Sweden, creating an advanced fighter jet was a significant, and polarizing, endeavor. The program was under the microscope, so to speak. Two crashes during the flight-testing phase exacerbated the attention and criticism. In the first incident, in 1989, test pilot Lars Radestrom crashed while landing, as the result of an error with the fly-by-wire flight control system (FCS) pitch-control, which caused pilot-induced oscillation. Here’s a video of the crash. In the second incident, in 1993, Radestom – back for more – lost control of the Gripen during a roll at low altitude; the Gripen stalled and Radestrom ejected, surviving.) And here’s a video of that crash). The crash was credited to high amplification of the pilot’s stick command inputs. Corrections took months.
Eventually, Saab got the Gripen on track; the jet has been in service since 1996.
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The Gripen was developed to replace aging Draken and Viggen aircraft. The Swedes wanted a new jet that could hit Mach 2, take-off from short runways, and that would be smaller than the Viggen while carrying a higher payload. Foreign aircraft were considered as replacements, including the F-16, the F/A-18, the F-20, and the Mirage 2000, before Saab was chosen to create a brand-new airframe.
For Sweden, creating an advanced fighter jet was a significant, and polarizing, endeavor. The program was under the microscope, so to speak. Two crashes during the flight-testing phase exacerbated the attention and criticism. In the first incident, in 1989, test pilot Lars Radestrom crashed while landing, as the result of an error with the fly-by-wire flight control system (FCS) pitch-control, which caused pilot-induced oscillation. Here’s a video of the crash. In the second incident, in 1993, Radestom – back for more – lost control of the Gripen during a roll at low altitude; the Gripen stalled and Radestrom ejected, surviving.) And here’s a video of that crash). The crash was credited to high amplification of the pilot’s stick command inputs. Corrections took months.
Eventually, Saab got the Gripen on track; the jet has been in service since 1996.
Please Support My Channel Military Today by Subscribe.
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