Massive double blow to Rafale fighter jet, Saab Gripen beats French machine in…, Will India buy lethal fighter jet from…?

The French Rafale fighter jet has suffered a major setback in the South American country of Colombia after it announced that it will replace its aging Israeli fighter jets with Saab Gripen fighter jets. Colombia has now become the second South American country after Brazil to choose the Saab Gripen over the French Rafale fighter jet. Colombian President Gustavo Petro confirmed this in a statement on social media site X on April 2. He announced the selection of the Saab Gripen-E/F fighter aircraft and said that the country has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with the Swedish government.

This announcement by the President of Colombia has come at a time when the country’s Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez had said that the country is going to announce the purchase of new fighter jets very soon. He had told the country several options, including F-16, Swedish Gripen and French Rafale. Although at that time he did not say how many aircraft the country wants to buy, but in 2023 he indicated that there is an intention to buy 16 aircraft. For which a budget of 3.65 billion dollars was allocated.

The Colombian Air Force currently has less than 20 old Israeli fighter jets left. Therefore, their ability to counter threats has decreased significantly. Colombia faces the threat of dangerous gangs like FARC, ELN and Clan del Golfo.

Apart from this, the country also has a tense relationship with Venezuela, with which it shares a long border. Former Colombian Defense Minister Ivan Velazquez revealed in early 2023 that negotiations were started with Saab and Dassault in 2022 to buy a state-of-the-art fighter aircraft, but those talks failed. It was later learned that the US had offered to sell the F-16 Viper (Block 70/72).

It now remains to be seen if India will be interested in buying these lethal weapons.

News