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The production of the first forward fuselage for Gripen E at the factory in São Bernardo do Campo.

Saab completes production of the first forward fuselage for Gripen E in Brazil

2 min read

Saab is celebrating another milestone in the Brazilian Gripen Programme: the completion of the production of the first forward fuselage for Gripen E at the factory in São Bernardo do Campo.

The forward fuselage of the aircraft is where the cockpit is located. In it are installed the ejection seat, flight controls such as joystick and pedals, the canopy, the AESA radar, the cabin displays, as well as all the aircraft’s avionics systems.

The part was finished during the last week of October and will be sent to Sweden as part of the global supply chain for the production of the new aircraft. The structures produced in Brazil and Sweden are identical and can be installed on any new Gripen E aircraft.

“This production reinforces the message that it is possible to conduct a large scale transfer of knowledge and technology such as this to other countries. Brazilian professionals are highly qualified and we are fulfilling all our contractual obligations with the Brazilian government”, says Ola Rosén, head of operations at Saab’s aerostructure plant in Brazil.

the production of the first forward fuselage for Gripen E at the factory in São Bernardo do Campo.

Considered one of the most complex work packages amongst the structures that will be assembled in Brazil, this delivery represents for the team the realization of a successful Transfer of Technology (ToT). Since 2020, when the assembly of the forward fuselage began, around 15 professionals have been directly dedicated to the process. Also the expatriate Swedish professionals accompanied and helped with the manufacturing process in Brazil.

“It is very gratifying to produce an aerostructure as complex as the forward fuselage here in Brazil. This means that the training of the teams, the processes and the installation of the necessary tools were successfully completed for the production of this structure, thus enabling the factory in Brazil for the next deliveries that already are in production. The next steps will be the optimisation and maturation of these processes, in order to have the same efficiency as the factory in Sweden,” concludes Alexandre Barbosa, engineering manager of Saab's aerostructure factory in Brazil.