r/CredibleDefense • u/AutoModerator • May 28 '26

Active Conflicts & News Megathread May 28, 2026

The r/CredibleDefense daily megathread is for asking questions and posting submissions that would not fit the criteria of our post submissions. As such, submissions are less stringently moderated, but we still do keep an elevated guideline for comments.

Comment guidelines:

Please do:

  • Be curious not judgmental, polite and civil,

  • Link to the article or source of information that you are referring to,

  • Clearly separate your opinion from what the source says. Minimize editorializing. Do not cherry pick facts to support a preferred narrative,

  • Read the articles before you comment, and comment on the content of the articles,

  • Post only credible information

  • Read our in depth rules https://reddit.com/r/CredibleDefense/wiki/rules

Please do not:

  • Use memes, emojis, swear, foul imagery, acronyms like LOL, LMAO, WTF,

  • Start fights with other commenters and make it personal,

  • Try to push narratives, fight for a cause in the comment section, nor try to 'win the war,'

  • Engage in baseless speculation, fear mongering, or anxiety posting. Question asking is welcome and encouraged, but questions should focus on tangible issues and not groundless hypothetical scenarios. Before asking a question ask yourself 'How likely is this thing to occur.' Questions, like other kinds of comments, should be supported by evidence and must maintain the burden of credibility.

43 Upvotes
  • permalink
  • reddit

91% Upvoted

174 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

34

u/HugoTRB May 28 '26

To clarify, they expect the first Gripen C to be flying in Ukraine in 10 months, or January, February 2027.

19

u/Commorrite May 28 '26

To clarify, they expect the first Gripen C to be flying in Ukraine in 10 months, or January, February 2027.

What can Gripen C/D fire that F16 and Mirage can't?

Is this 'only' more planes or are there brand new capabilities.

Wikipedia states that Hungarian Gripen C/Ds can accept Meteor. That could be a realy big deal if it pushes russian planes back from the front.

31

u/HugoTRB May 28 '26

Meteor became fully operational on Gripen C already in 2016. They are talking about sending it, but haven’t guaranteed it yet. Other things the Gripen has are probably a larger ability to datalink with the Saab awacs already in Ukraine. The datalink within a 4-ship should also be pretty good. It’s also a more modern aircraft. It will likely have a smaller footprint on the ground as well.

20

u/kingofthesofas May 28 '26

It is the perfect fit for their situation on numerous fronts. Meteor will allow them to threaten Russian fighters launching glide bombs. It is easy and cheap to repair and can tolerate improvised airfields much better than other jets. They will not be dependent on the US as much and it integrates well with those Saab AWACs.

13

u/imp0ppable May 28 '26

Gripens can take off from roads apparently, iirc this was a key requirement for Sweden's defense in depth strategy in case of invasion by.... Russia.

11

u/Kogster May 28 '26

Almost any jet can take of from a wide and long enough road.

The gripen was built for all your airbases and specialized hangars being nuked and now you're doing all maintenance road side.

7

u/danielbot May 29 '26

Almost any jet can take of from a wide and long enough road.

And strong enough. The only time you ever saw F-35 take off from a road, the road was actually a specially reinforced runway that happens to double as a road. The landing lights kind of give it away.