Swedish defense company Saab has expressed optimism about the prospects of signing a contract with Ukraine for the delivery of Gripen fighters. As CEO Micael Johansson noted, the aircraft deal, which would be historic for the company, Ukraine, and Sweden as a whole, could be finalized in the near future.
He made this statement during a program on the Swedish broadcaster SVT. Johansson said that a contract for Gripen fighters for Ukraine could be signed within a few months, or at the latest by the end of this year, which is an optimistic timeline.
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Just six months ago, in October 2025, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the signing of a letter of intent with Sweden regarding the procurement of Gripen fighters. If Saab is indeed aiming to finalize a contract in the near term, this would represent a very compressed timeline, given that finalizing requirements and agreeing on all contractual details often takes much longer, sometimes even years.
It appears, however, that both sides have conducted substantial work over these past six months, although the current stage of negotiations has not been disclosed. The deal involves the potential delivery of up to 150 Gripen fighters to Ukraine, which would make it one of the largest defense agreements in the history of both Sweden and Ukraine. It would also be Saab's largest order and the most significant reinforcement of Ukraine's Air Force with a single type of modern Western fighter.
According to reports, one of the key issues surrounding the Gripen deal has been financing. Saab’s positive assessment of the prospects for signing the contract in a short timeframe appears to be directly linked to the unblocking of a €90 billion credit facility for Ukraine, of which €60 billion is intended to support the country’s defense capabilities.
Saab's CEO declined to disclose details regarding the potential cost of procuring 100–150 Gripen aircraft or the price of a "bare" fighter. However, previous estimates suggest that such a deal could cost Ukraine up to $22 billion.
Payments for the fighters, as well as their delivery, will not occur all at once. Moreover, given Saab's current production capacity, delivering up to 150 fighters to Ukraine could take more than 12 years, not including any existing production backlog. This underscores the importance of localizing Gripen production in Ukraine.
It is also worth recalling that Ukraine’s president previously stated that the first Gripen aircraft could arrive as early as this year. These would likely be used Saab JAS 39 Gripen C/D fighters, with around 14 aircraft potentially available. Two years ago, Sweden already allocated components for these jets as part of a defense aid package.
Earlier, Defense Express reported that Saab promotes the Gripen as an ideal fighter for countering russia.
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