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No fresh deal with Pakistan
While Saab is offering the Gripen fighters to India, it is also providing the early warning aircraft system to Pakistan — an issue that has upset the IAF.
Pakistan used the SAAB-manufactured early warning aircraft system to coordinate its attack on an Indian military installation in Jammu and Kashmir a day after the Balakot strike earlier in February.
During his visit to Sweden in June this year, Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa had expressed his displeasure with the defence major for supplying Pakistan with early warning systems and also offering Gripen fighters to India.
New Delhi is of the view that it will be difficult to do business with a country that also arms the enemy.
In a bid to pacify the IAF, Ola Rignell persisted that SAAB is not selling any new products to Pakistan.
He also pointed out that every contender has dealt with Pakistan, and other assets were also used in the post-Balakot action.
Pakistan had used French fighters Mirage as well American F-16s.
However, Rignell remained non-committal on future sales to Pakistan, saying the Swedish government decides on such matters and not the company.
“As far as I know, we are not selling any new products to that country (Pakistan). There is an old order and we are fulfilling our contract obligation,” Rignell said.
The Pakistan Air Force had ordered three new SAAB 2000 early warning aircraft in 2017 to supplement the ones that were destroyed in a terror attack on Minhas air base five years before that.
Rignell added that he was part of the meeting in Sweden when Dhanoa raised the issue and this is exactly what he had told him as well.
“We are trying to sell the latest AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) — Golden Eye — to India. We have sold them to UAE. (But) India is already working on its indigenous systems,” he said.
theprint.in
While Saab is offering the Gripen fighters to India, it is also providing the early warning aircraft system to Pakistan — an issue that has upset the IAF.
Pakistan used the SAAB-manufactured early warning aircraft system to coordinate its attack on an Indian military installation in Jammu and Kashmir a day after the Balakot strike earlier in February.
During his visit to Sweden in June this year, Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa had expressed his displeasure with the defence major for supplying Pakistan with early warning systems and also offering Gripen fighters to India.
New Delhi is of the view that it will be difficult to do business with a country that also arms the enemy.
In a bid to pacify the IAF, Ola Rignell persisted that SAAB is not selling any new products to Pakistan.
He also pointed out that every contender has dealt with Pakistan, and other assets were also used in the post-Balakot action.
Pakistan had used French fighters Mirage as well American F-16s.
However, Rignell remained non-committal on future sales to Pakistan, saying the Swedish government decides on such matters and not the company.
“As far as I know, we are not selling any new products to that country (Pakistan). There is an old order and we are fulfilling our contract obligation,” Rignell said.
The Pakistan Air Force had ordered three new SAAB 2000 early warning aircraft in 2017 to supplement the ones that were destroyed in a terror attack on Minhas air base five years before that.
Rignell added that he was part of the meeting in Sweden when Dhanoa raised the issue and this is exactly what he had told him as well.
“We are trying to sell the latest AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) — Golden Eye — to India. We have sold them to UAE. (But) India is already working on its indigenous systems,” he said.
SAAB wants to offer Gripen at half of Rafale cost, with full tech transfer, local production
In an interview to ThePrint, SAAB India CMD Ola Rignell highlights efficiency of Gripen, its offer to India, & the issues around its sales to Pakistan.
theprint.in
