tks sig mp.net
http://www.scorpionaviation.com/html/Gripen.html
August 22 20008
What are you doing to stay tactically current in the Saab Gripen:
"Magnus" - If the question is directed at me personally then my answer must be that as a test pilot you do stay current from a technical and flying skills perspective but to stay tactically current with all developments within the Air Force today is harder. We try to participate in air force exercises and we do follow the developments through colleagues in the air force. However, even though I as a Gripen test pilot probably have more hours on the jet than most Swedish Air Force pilots, I can never compete tactically with them, at least not regarding the latest developments such as NTISR etc. In some fields, such as BVR fights, where I had a big hand in the development within the SwAF, I still think I can hold my own but I'm not sure all younger fighter pilots in the Air Force would agree...If your question is aimed at Saab in general, our company has extremely good knowledge of the latest developments within the tactical sphere as we are required to answer questions about this from countries all over the world.
What are your initial impressions of the Saab Gripen:
"Magnus" - My initial impressions of the Gripen were formed many years ago but they still stand. Gripen is a fantastic aircraft to fly, a pilots dream and all the pilots that have flown the aircraft since, Swedish as well as foreigners, seems to have the same opinion.
How does the Saab Gripen compare to any other bomber and/or aircraft you have flown, and what are the main differences:
"Magnus" - 1. A truly amazing data link
2. A fantastic flight control system
3. Outstanding agility
4. An HMI that still has no comparison anywhere in the world.
Have you already flown the two-seat "New Technology Demonstrator", and how does it compare to the "older" A/B/C/D models:
"Magnus" - No, but I was one of the "inventors" of it. In short, the aircraft is designed to demonstrate a new engine, the F414G, more internal fuel (+40%), more weapon stations and a new avionics architecture. It's a beast.
The cockpit layout provides a human-machine interface that eases pilot workload substantially and increases situational awareness.
Could you tell us a little bit more of these systems, and how they work and/or ease the workload:
"Magnus" - The simplest way to put it is to say that they are designed in a way that allows the pilot to understand everything without reading a manual. If all electronic gizmos we buy in the shops had an HMI like Gripen, we would save a lot of paper...Just to give one example, in every fighter in the world, you somehow show when you can fire an air-to-air missile. In most aircraft this is shown with bars, numbers or lines. In Gripen you show the entire envelope of the missile based on your current energy state but you also show the same for your enemy. Everything is shown graphically and it is very easy to manoeuvre to a position, by just looking at the graphics on the electronic map, where I can fire my missiles and where I know that my opponent can't. It sounds simple but you will not find that in any other fighter.
The cockpit is equipped with a advanced cockpit layout with large color Multi-Function Displays (MFDs) and Hands-On-Throttle-And-Stick (HOTAS) controls. Could you please guide us true these displays and systems, to have an idea how it works, and makes live easier:
"Magnus" - Big question. To put it short, the Head down Displays gives me situational awareness through an intuitive, scalable map with my own ship position and the positions and tracks of all my wingmen and all known targets. The EW display shows a correlated, data fused picture of emitting radars around me. The multi sensor display show information from all my sensors (radar, weapons, targeting pods etc) . The HUD, which one might think look all the same in all fighters, is different in Gripen. It is amazing and it's something every pilot that has flown the Gripen wants in their own aircraft. It is protected by a Saab patent.
The Saab Gripen is powered by a Volvo Aero RM12 afterburning turbofan engine, is this in your opinion a key asset of the Gripen. Please explain what the main advantage is of this engine, and what gives just that extra, compared to others:
"Magnus" - The RM12 is extremely trustworthy with 120 000 flying hours without a single flame out. It is very responsive and you can treat it very roughly without any problems.
The Saab Gripen is prepared to land on public roads, which is very common within the Air Force of Sweden.
What are does preparations, please explain:
"Magnus" - Once again the HMI is outstanding. You press L (for landing) on the UCP, select the road base, and follow the information in the HUD. Piece of cake!
What is the hardest, and easiest thing about working on the Saab Gripen?:
"Magnus" - The hardest thing is getting people to understand that this fighter is the best choice for almost all air forces in the world even though it is made in a small country up north. Everything else is easy in comparison.
The Saab Gripen is build with keeping in mind a very low maintenance percentage. The operating costs are 50% lower than other competitors. Please explain which systems and/or use of the Gripen is made easier:
"Magnus" - Your figure is probably correct if we talk about legacy fighters like the F16. If we compare with large aircraft like the Eurofighter, our operating costs are much less in comparison. Much, much, much less.
Could you please guide us true the most commonly used weapon system on the Saab Gripen, and how they are integrated with all the latest and highly technologically used systems and the radar:
"Magnus" - That would be classified
The Gripen is packed with Fully-integrated avionic systems operating via five MIL-STD 1553B digital data bus highways, and the world's most highly developed data link. Could you please explain a little bit more of those systems:
"Magnus" - In short, the data buses, whether it is the 1553 bus or the weapon related 1760 bus is a way for individual subsystems to talk to each other on a common channel. It is a prerequisite for proper data fusion etc.
The Dutch Air Force (RNLAF) is revaluating of buying the Saab Gripen, could you please give your personal opinion on the Gripen.
Which will hopefully persuade the Dutch Government in buying the Gripen:
"Magnus" - First of all, Gripen NG will give the RNLAF a true multirole fighter that can carry weapons that the JSF can only dream about (METEOR for instance). It's super cruise capability (where you can fly supersonic without using the afterburner) together the weapons makes it a formidable air-to-air fighter, something every pilot wants if things are for real. The ability to carry a massive weapons load is also a plus if you are using it in the air-to-ground role and the fact that it can be used for tactical and strategic recce in peace and war is also a good feature for the Netherlands. The Dutch will be invited to participate in the development of the Gripen NG which can revitalize the Dutch Aerospace industry and give real, high tech jobs. The cost of acquisition is a fraction of the competition and the cost of operating the aircraft will not bleed the RNLAF to death.
And last but not least, could you maybe share a short story of a memorable deployment or exercise flight you have made in the JAS 39 Gripen, or any other memorable flight during combat:
"Magnus" - That would take more room and time than I have right now, but the last two years, spent in South Africa testing their new Gripen, was probably the best flying period in my life.
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