Flygsystem 2020: A 6th Generation Fighter That Could Replace JAS 39 Gripen

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Key Points and Summary: Sweden’s Saab is developing Flygsystem 2020, a sixth-generation stealth fighter poised to surpass the capabilities of its renowned Gripen family.

-Designed for high-threat environments, the fighter places a premium on stealth, survivability, and manned-unmanned teaming. Loyal wingman drones, integrated AI for faster decision-making, and advanced materials for enhanced low observability all figure prominently.

-Flygsystem 2020 is expected to debut gradually, complementing rather than abruptly replacing Gripen fleets.

-Though the stealth jet’s higher cost could limit its export potential, Saab may mitigate expenses through international partnerships. Ultimately, Flygsystem 2020 reflects Sweden’s strategic shift toward cutting-edge defense technology and battlefield adaptability.

Saab’s Flygsystem 2020: Sweden’s Ambitious Sixth-Generation Fighter

Saab’s Flygsystem 2020 is an upcoming, sixth-generation stealth fighter in development by Sweden’s Saab aerospace and defense company. 

The fighter would be an ambitious step forward in fighter aviation, designed to address future threats and opportunities in a rapidly evolving aerospace landscape. While its specifications remain classified, the project diverges significantly from the Gripen family of multirole fighters in purpose, technology, and operational philosophy. 

Flygsystem 2020 aims to redefine Sweden’s aerial defense capabilities by integrating cutting-edge technologies, including manned-unmanned teaming, advanced stealth, and artificial intelligence (AI).

Saab’s Gripen has a solid reputation as a very cost-effective and versatile fighter capable of operating in diverse conditions and taking on a variety of mission profiles. However, it is primarily designed to balance performance, affordability, and interoperability with NATO systems rather than flying at the bleeding edge of technological innovation. 

Flygsystem 2020, by contrast, appears to prioritize a more specialized role in high-threat environments against dangerous and powerful adversaries: in a few words, a peer, or near-peer rival.

One of the key differences between the Gripen and Flygsystem 2020 is its emphasis on survivability and adaptability against modern anti-aircraft systems. 

Early reports and analysis, as well as sketch-ups of the fighter, suggest that stealth will play a significant role, potentially incorporating advanced materials and design features to reduce radar, infrared, and even acoustic signatures. The Gripen has limited stealth capabilities, but the Flygsystem 2020, on the other hand, will likely take low observability very seriously.

Stealth capabilities aside, one of the essential factors that differentiates Flygsystem 2020 from the Gripen will be the integration of manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T). This capability enables a manned aircraft to operate in concert with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), enhancing situational awareness, reducing risk to human pilots, and multiplying force projection.

Unmanned UAVs flying with a piloted aircraft could act as so-called loyal wingmen, performing tasks such as surveillance, electronic warfare, or strike missions in contested environments. This ability — to coordinate autonomous systems with human pilots — will be essential in high-threat zones in the future, where UAVs can take on dangerous missions, allowing manned aircraft to maintain safer standoff distances and out of harm’s way.

Artificial intelligence is expected to play a crucial role in making these capabilities a reality. AI systems could enhance pilots’ decision-making processes by performing mundane tasks like optimizing flight paths and managing sensor data to more involved processes like deciding on responses to electronic threats, target sets, or other aircraft. AI integration would be essential to reduce pilot workload and decrease response times — and not just while in the air. There is also space for artificial intelligence to perform maintenance and damage assessment, offering quick repair turnaround times and extending the life of the airframe.

However, Flygsystem 2020’s advanced capabilities would not necessarily result in a rapid one-for-one replacement of the older Gripen in the Swedish Air Force. Instead, like the American F-35, the Flygsystem 2020 will likely be introduced into tranches, teaming up with older, non-stealthy fighters well into the future — a nod to cost-effectiveness and affordability.

JAS 39. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Flygsystem 2020 and Cost 

One potential question mark when considering the Flygsystem 2020 program is project costs and how research and development would affect the program.

One of the Gripen’s great strengths was that, despite being entirely designed and built at home, project costs remained relatively low compared to other fighter projects. The Gripen’s affordability was a strong selling point for air forces that needed an affordable fighter to address security concerns in threat environments that did not require stealth capabilities.

Developing a high-end stealth fighter is a significant break from that strategy. Not only will the Flygsystem 2020 fighter undoubtedly cost significantly more, but the resulting jet’s export potential would be more limited than the Gripen. It would cater to countries that require a stealth capability.

One potential solution would be to adopt the research and development cost-sharing strategy that has marked many stealth jet programs, particularly in Europe, by sharing costs with other countries interested in building a stealth platform from the ground up. Though that strategy risks competing mission requirements and design considerations, it could help keep costs down.

JAS 39 Gripen. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

About the Author: Caleb Larson 

Caleb Larson is an American multiformat journalist based in Berlin, Germany. His work covers the intersection of conflict and society, focusing on American foreign policy and European security. He has reported from Germany, Russia, and the United States. Most recently, he covered the war in Ukraine, reporting extensively on the war’s shifting battle lines from Donbas and writing on the war’s civilian and humanitarian toll. Previously, he worked as a Defense Reporter for POLITICO Europe. You can follow his latest work on X.