European fighters that Ukraine requests to support F-16s against Russia

After receiving the first F-16 fighters a few weeks ago and losing the first of them just a few days ago, Ukraine is now focusing on continuing international contacts to obtain more warplanes from its allies. In addition to the promised French Mirage 2000-5, since kyiv plans to add Swedish Saab Gripen and Eurofighter Typhoon to its ranksthe latter is in service in Spain as the backbone of the Air and Space Force.

“There are engagement talks or consultations for the Gripen, and there are consultations for the Eurofighter,” Rustem Umyerov, Ukraine’s defense minister, said in an interview.This is a very good list of platforms and we are discussing when they will start.”

During the same broadcast, Umyerov indicated that he hoped to be able to give news on possible transfers “soon”. Without saying more about the countries participating in this new program which would be ready to abandon their planes or to receive crews in training in their academies.

“We worked last year to focus on training the pilots, getting the platforms, building all the necessary infrastructure, and this year we will focus on how to expand it enough to have air superiority“. In August 2023, after a visit to Sweden, Zelensky said that the first pilots were already learning to use the fighter, although from Stockholm it was indicated that they needed to have all the Gripens to defend their own country.

Moreover, the minister stressed that “the enemy”, directly referring to Russia, uses 300 aircraft and as many helicopters. “That is why we explain to our partners how many brigades or squadrons we need,” as well as the platforms and weapons best placed to integrate in its air force.

This announcement comes at a very important time for the kyiv army and its international visibility. Just a few days ago, the French Armed Forces announced on their social networks The first generation of Ukrainian pilots had completed their training aboard the Alphajet training jet. This aircraft model has been modified with a new cockpit with an instrument panel that mimics the F-16 fighters.

The Swedish Gripen

Development of the Saab JAS 39 Gripen began in late 1979 when the Swedish government asked the company to study the design of a multi-role fighter to replace the Saab 35 Draken. After a few years of engineering work, the first flight took place in 1988 and It was officially introduced into the Scandinavian country’s air force in 1996..

He The latest information on the triangle formed by the Gripen fighterSweden and Ukraine date back only a few days, when Stockholm addressed the issue directly in a statement detailing a recently approved aid package. “At the moment, it is not relevant to transfer the JAS Gripen to Ukraine, as this would interfere with the introduction of the F-16,” they say.

“However, the government continues to work to create the necessary conditions for a possible to assist Ukraine with the JAS-39 Gripen at a later stage. THE “kits of materials [que se reflejan en la lista del lote de ayuda] “These are the parts of the JAS-39C/D used in the construction of the new JAS-39E.”

By purchasing these kits of materials and parts, the conditions are created to “be able to donate a quantity of JAS-39C/D” instead of cannibalizing them to create more modern platforms belonging to the E variantSweden is currently at an important point of modernizing its fleet and is using existing equipment in older aircraft to make the creation of units of the new model faster and cheaper.

Currently, the Scandinavian country has about 97 Gripen fighters belonging to the C and D versions. While the medium-term plans indicate that they will have a total of 120 active Gripens by 2030 and at least half of them will be of the E version. leaves, approximately, about 37 C/D with potential for transfer to Ukraine.

In terms of capabilities, the Gripen is one of the most respected all-round fighters on the international scene. Largely thanks to the continuous updates and modernization programs that Sweden has put in place since practically the first aircraft joined its ranks.

It has advanced radar and sensors that make it “a formidable platform against most modern combat aircraft” in terms of air warfare, as analyst Brandon J. Weichert explains in National interest. He belongs to what is commonly called the fourth generation. morejust like the Eurofighter.

“It is essentially a fourth-generation warplane platform. enhanced with technologies that would normally be found in a fifth-class aircraft generation”. Mainly in everything related to sensors, such as radars, or advanced communication and data sharing systems with the rest of the deployed troops.

The Gripen is compatible with standard NATO weapons such as AIM-120 AMRAAM and Meteor air-to-air missiles. For surface attacks, the fighter can integrate bombs, rockets and other types of missiles.

“Reconnaissance capabilities are enhanced by modern cameras and sensors,” Weicher continues. “And that’s well defended against electronic warfare attackswhich means the aircraft can withstand this type of attack.”

The plane stands out for its “great speed and agility”It reaches cruising speeds of over 2,000 km/h (twice the speed of sound) and is combined with a range of 800 kilometers. Its most significant international deployments have been in Libya and Afghanistan.

In this African country, the Gripen was used as European fighter jet in war against Muammar Gaddafi In 2011, the Czech Republic and Hungary – two of its operators – used these fighters against insurgents in Afghanistan.

Eurofighter

The Eurofighter Typhoon is the result of a multinational consortium involving Spain, Germany, France, Italy and the United Kingdom that began to take shape in the late 1980s. The first flight took place in March 1994 and. entered service in August 2003.

It is characterized by its extraordinary maneuverability and ability to maintain air superiority which has been updated over the years to incorporate more modern technology. The resulting versions of these programs are called Tranches and the Spanish Air and Space Force has several units of each of them.

In September 2023, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved the extension of the Halcón programme to the acquisition of more Eurofighter fighters of the Tranche 4+ versionthe most modern of those developed so far. In total, the Air and Space Force hopes to receive 45 of these aircraft in the coming years in order to replace the F-18s, particularly those based in Gando (Gran Canaria) which are already at the end of their useful life.

One of the most characteristic functions of European fighters is interoperability and connectivity. According to the Eurofighter consortium itself, the aircraft can “exchange information across all domains and platforms. It supports seamless network integration that leads to information superiority.”

All this “information” is collected via the integrated systems on board. “All data received from the aircraft’s sensors must be merged into a single image coherent that allows the operator to make the right decision at the right time. This is called sensor fusion.”

The goal, as they state, “is establish 360-degree coverage and situational awareness for the operator“. They also note that the mission architecture “will support onboard processing to ensure that only relevant information is displayed to the pilot.”

In terms of specifications, the Eurofighter is 15.96 metres long, with a wingspan of 10.95 and a maximum take-off weight of 23,500 kilogramsOne of the keys to the fighter is its propulsion system consisting of a pair of low-bypass Eurojet EJ200 engines that manage to combine thrust power and efficiency.

The latter translates directly to a maximum speed of 2,495 km/h (2 times the speed of sound) at high altitude and a flight ceiling exceeding 19,000 meters. The autonomy also stands out, being able to reach 3 hours of air patrol or 1,390 km for ground attack missions.

The range with which the Spanish Air and Space Force equips its Eurofighters is vast. Some of the most advanced are IRIS-T missiles for air-to-air attacks that in 2022 they received a significant budget item for their update. They have a range that goes from 12 to 15 kilometers, depending on the height at which they are launched and the flight envelope of the fighter.

They also have American-made AIM-120 air-to-air missiles, which have an operational range of over 100 kilometers and a speed of over 4,000 km/h. They are combined with the new Meteor missiles with an operational range of up to 150 kmFor ground attacks, Eurofighters integrate guided bombs of different types and will be able to integrate Brimstone missiles acquired in 2022.