Gripen Turns to the East.The Saab-BAe Systems Gripen team has made public its fully compliant response to the Czech Republic's tender for a new-generation, supersonic su·per·son·ic adj. 1. Having, caused by, or relating to a speed greater than the speed of sound in a given medium, especially air. 2. Of or relating to sound waves beyond human audibility. , multi-role fighter with which to meet its national, Nato and European defence requirements. The bid, delivered in the Czech language Czech language (chĕk), in the past sometimes also called Bohemian, member of the West Slavic group of the Slavic subfamily of the Indo-European family of languages (see Slavic languages). , provided comprehensive details of a 150 per cent offset programme, a 100 percent long-term structured finance package, full technical specifications of the Gripen and a delivery schedule to begin in 2004 consisting of either 24 or 36 aircraft. In an unrelated event, two single-seat Gripens were demonstrated, again in Eastern Europe Eastern Europe The countries of eastern Europe, especially those that were allied with the USSR in the Warsaw Pact, which was established in 1955 and dissolved in 1991. , in local defence exercises with the Polish Air Force Polish Air Force (Siły Powietrzne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, Siły Powietrzne RP). Until 1 July 2004 it was officially known as: Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej (literally: Air and Air Defence Forces, the name existing from 1990). near Szcecin, Poland. The Gripen operated alongside a Polish Air Force MiG-29, MiG-21, an Su-22 and an Iskra. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] |
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