Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index Saab Gripen. The Saab JAS-39 "Gripen" (Griffin) is a fighter aircraft from Sweden.. Already in operational service with the Swedish Air Force, which has ordered 204 aircraft (including 28 dual-seater), Gripen has also been ordered by the South African Air Force (28 aircraft). Hungary and the Czech Republic have each ordered 14 Gripens. Characteristics Role: single seat multi-role fighter aircaft Powerplant: Volvo Flygmotor RM12 tubofan with 5,507 kgf military thrust and 8,212 kgf maximum thrust Size: Length: 14.1 m Height: 4.5 m Wingspan: 8.4 m Wing area: 25.54 m² Weight: Empty: 6,620 kg Normal Takeoff: 8,720 kg Maximum: 14,000 kg Speed: Maximum: Mach 2.2 at altitude, supersonic at low level Ceiling: about 15 km. Range: Air Combat (10 minute loiter): 800 km Ferry: ? km Wing Loading: 341 kg/m² at normal takeoff weight Thrust/weight ratio: 0.94 at normal takeoff weight Armament: 27mm Mauser BK-27 cannon 4 AIM-9 Sidewinder, 2 AIM-120 AMRAAM; or MICA air-to-ground weapons include: ? Cost: 1998USD 25 m First flown: 1989 In service date: 1996 Users (on order): Sweden (204), South Africa (28), Czech Republic (14), Hungary (14) External Links http://dmoz.org/Society/Military/Aviation/Aircraft/Fighters/JAS-39_Gripen/ http://www.gripen.com/ See also: Comparison of 2000s fighter aircraft This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.