Czech defense seeks NATO help amid gripen lease dispute
The Czech Defense Minister, Jana Černochová, admitted that if her country does not reach an agreement with Sweden regarding the continued leasing of Gripens, NATO allies will have to take over air defense responsibilities for the Czech Republic.
11:02 AM EST, December 18, 2024
Jana Černochová discussed the uncertain situation concerning the Czech air force in an interview with the portal aktualne.cz. She noted that until 2027, the Czech Republic will be using 14 Gripen fighters leased from Sweden. Eventually, these are to be replaced by the F-35 fighters ordered by Prague, but they will not be operational until 2031.
The Czechs might be left without fighters. Help from Poland?
If no agreement is reached with the Swedes, there could be issues during the so-called "transition period," during which the Czechs would have to rely on support from NATO. Černochová acknowledged that initial offers of support to protect airspace have already been made by Germany, Slovakia, and Poland.
The portal aktualne.cz pointed out that sharing airspace protection duties among NATO allies is part of routine air policing missions. This practice is familiar to Czech pilots, who have already conducted such missions, for example, over the Baltic States or Iceland.
Negotiations on the new leasing agreement with Sweden are ongoing, but there are disagreements over the financial terms of cooperation. Stockholm requires that fixed leasing fees be maintained until the end of the contract, while Prague wants a decrease in fees as more F-35s come into service.
Valued but not widespread fighters
The JAS-39 Gripen (JAS: Jakt – fighter, Attack – attack, Spaning – reconnaissance) is a multirole fighter crafted by the aerospace company SAAB. This single-engine aircraft with delta wings and canard control surfaces offers pilots excellent maneuverability and can achieve speeds up to Mach 2 (about 1,324 mph).
The JAS-39 Gripen measures about 46 feet in length. It can operate at altitudes up to 59,000 feet and neutralize hostile targets with a versatile arsenal. It standardly features a 27 mm Mauser BK-27 cannon but can also accommodate missiles and bombs with significantly greater firepower, including AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles and Taurus KEPD 350 cruise missiles.
A distinguishing feature of the JAS-39 Gripen is its ability to operate from short, improvised runways (about 2,625 feet in length and, in exceptional circumstances, even about 1,640 feet).
Only Sweden, Hungary, and the Czech Republic currently use JAS-39 Gripen fighters in Europe. In the near future, Ukraine may join the group of users of these aircraft.
