Gripen Eyes Exposure in Aero India 2007
Dated 11/1/2007
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With the Request For Proposal (RFP) pending on the Indian Air Force’s 126 Multi Role Combat Aircraft contract, Gripen International - one of the bidders in the race - is eyeing critical visibility at the upcoming Aero India (February 7-11) in Bangalore.
Talking to Deccan Herad on Wednesday, Tony Ogilvy, Vice President (Sales and Marketing) - Gripen International said the show was extremely crucial in the company’s plans for India.
"We've pooled all our resources into the event. A big pavilion has been shipped out and for the first time in Asia, three fighter aircraft from the Swedish Air Force will be on display. Aero India will reflect Gripen's commitment to India and show our real intent," Mr Ogilvy said. The simulated cockpit for fighter pilots - that will be part of the Gripen pavilion at Aero India - will showcase its key features including top-of-the-line visual display and air-to-air datalinking.
Bangalore calling
Gripen, the fighters export and marketing wing of Swedish aerospace major Saab, is in the MRCA race with its JAS 39 fighter. The contract, the RFP for which is expected to be issued soon, is worth around Rs 30,000 crore. Mr Ogilvy — who is also Gripen India's Campaign Director — said that in a market which has the F-16s, MiG-21s and the Mirages, Gripen’s had been a low-profile presence.
He, however, said the idea was to push for the change through a series of initiatives, one of them being the launch of the Bangalore operations, complete with a core team of three to four senior design and technological experts.
"Bangalore is the centre of the Indian aerospace industry and Aero India will be the ideal platform to display Gripen aircraft for the first time to the IAF, as well as the public," he said.
Mr Ogilvy said Gripen JAS 39 offered a low-maintenance model with an assured life of 40 years. He said IAF had wanted fighters in the race to be upgraded to Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars and Gripen would — on acceptance of RFP — include the radars in the offer. On IAF's demand for heavier, twin-engined fighters, Mr Ogilvy said he was not aware of such preferences. "We are presenting ourselves in the six to eight tonne category and single-engine fighters are the norm these days."
