“The French fighter belongs to the class of heavy twin-engine aircraft, but the Swedish one belongs to the light single-engine class. And their maximum take-off weight is 24.5 and 16.5 tons. And from this the difference in real combat capabilities begins,” writes the author.
According to his information, Rafale has better thrust-to-weight ratio, but higher fuel consumption. At the same time, the Gripen E (one of the versions of the aircraft) has a longer default flight range (4000 km) than the French fighter with additional fuel tanks (3700 km).
The Rafale can carry more weapons – 9.5 tons on 14 hardpoints versus 7.2 tons on 10 hardpoints for the Gripen – but the number of heavy weapons hardpoints is the same – five.
The on-board radio-electronic equipment of both aircraft is similar, but specific parameters regarding the target detection range are not disclosed, as indicated in the publication.
“From the point of view of the possibility of using weapons, the French Rafale and Gripen are actually the same. Both can use a wide range of weapons to destroy air, ground and sea targets. Both have integrated long-range Meteor missiles, cruise and anti-ship missiles. But the Gripen is “omnivorous” because, at the request of the customer, virtually any weapon is integrated into it,” the media writes.
Defense Express notes that “Rafale will be objectively more expensive both to purchase and to operate than the Gripen, which is objectively the cheapest fighter of the “four+” generation.”
“The Swedish aircraft, as we know, are subject to significantly lower requirements regarding runways and general maintenance. And whether the slightly wider combat capabilities of the Rafale covers the difference in price and operating costs with the Gripen is actually a very difficult question. And we can only hope that the correct answer to it was received before the start of the contracting process for French fighters,” the author said.
Context
President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky said earlier that the development strategy of Ukrainian military aviation is built on three platforms – the American F-16, the French Mirage 2000 and the Swedish Gripen, but it is the Gripen that is a priority for the Ukrainian army.
At the end of October, the president reported that Ukraine was conducting three parallel conversations with Sweden, France and the United States on the supply of 250 new aircraft.
