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Thailand’s Gripen E/F: Saab begins assembling the first fighters in Linköping for RTAF F-16 replacement

Royal Thai Air Force officials visited Saab in Sweden to review progress on Thailand’s Gripen E/F acquisition. Saab says production has started, with assembly of the first jet beginning at the company’s Linköping facility under the program aimed at replacing RTAF F-16 Block 15 aircraft.

Discovered 2026-05-14T01:35:14.965511-07:00 | 2026-05-14T01:35:14.965511-07:00

Briefing

What Hype is tracking

This is an execution milestone: Saab has started assembly of Thailand’s first Gripen E/F at Linköping, giving tangible signal on program momentum for replacing Thailand’s F-16 Block 15 fleet.
Industrial scaling and delivery-rate expectations around Gripen are directly relevant to how Thailand’s aircraft will be sequenced and integrated—context echoed by Saab’s stated push to expand Gripen output (source:f8614b5b-fc23-4cb7-bafe-6472e36a6b9c).
The cluster also sits within the broader pattern of export-path scrutiny and contract execution uncertainty seen in other Gripen developments, informing how decision-makers should assess schedule and downstream industrial commitments (source:90fdd071-1814-416f-8218-e9b191ca59a7).

Reported By

aviationnews.eu AeroTime adj.com.my Air Data News zona-militar.com