Sweden built a Russian fighter jet killer and stealth is irrelevant
Sweden’s air force says its Gripen E fighter jets are designed to kill Russia’s fearsome Sukhoi fighter jets, and that they have a “black belt” in that type of combat.
The Gripen E can’t carry the most weapons and has no real stealth. And it isn’t the longest-range, fastest, or even cheapest jet.
But it has a massive and respected electronic-warfare capability.
The Gripen E is Sweden’s cheap solution to killing Russia’s fighter jets and surface-to-air missiles, and Russia probably can’t do much about it.
The commander of Sweden’s air force, Mats Helgesson, recently made the bold statement that his country’s Saab Gripen E fighter could beat Russia’s formidable fleet of Sukhoi jets with none of the expensive stealth technology the US relies on.
“Gripen, especially the E-model, is designed to kill Sukhois.
There we have a black belt,” Helgesson told Yle at a presentation in Finland, where Sweden is trying to export the jets.
Business Insider