Brazil's Gripens and Ecureuils delayed

Two major acquisition programmes of the Força Aérea Brasileira (FAB, Brazilian Air Force) are suffering massive delays.

Firstly, as you noted, the Gripen deliveries had more or less come to a halt with only one delivered this year. The final aircraft was to be delivered in 2026 according to the previous planning from 2023. However, four more aircraft were ordered and the implementation of the Brazilian production has been slow. On top of that, FAB had to notify the Senate that there is a 13% cost increase too. The last of 40 aircraft is to arrive in 2032, marking a six year delay, and the next delivery will only take place in 2027. This also means that the de-activation of the F-5 fleet will likely slip, originally foreseen for 2028.

Another programme that moves slower than expected is the H-50 (AS350) replacement. The new H-125 (H125 Ecureuil) are just starting to be delivered. This means that the service life of the H-50s will need to be stretched considerably compared to the original planning. The last one will now be withdrawn in June 2032 instead of December 2027 as was originally envisaged.

Credit photo: Ian French