Swedish defense and aerospace leader with 22,000 employees globally, actively exploring strategic manufacturing partnership with Portuguese aerospace company OGMA to produce Gripen fighter jet components and support the Portuguese Air Force modernization.
Saab's Portugal presence is currently in the pre-operational phase, though strategically important. The company has formal engagement with Portugal's air traffic management authority (NAV Portugal) and maintains collaborative relationships on surveillance and navigation systems. More significantly, Saab is actively exploring a manufacturing and assembly partnership with OGMA (Ogden Aerostructures), Portugal's state-owned aerospace company, to produce components and potentially final assembly for the Gripen fighter jet, contingent on the Portuguese Air Force selecting Gripen to replace its aging F-16 fleet.
If Portugal's procurement process results in a Gripen selection, Saab's presence would expand substantially to include final assembly, systems integration, and long-term sustainment operations, creating hundreds of aerospace manufacturing and engineering jobs. This represents a significant potential growth corridor for Swedish industrial expertise in Portugal and would mark one of the largest Nordic aerospace investments in the Portuguese market.
Saab's potential investment in Portugal signals how Nordic defense and aerospace leaders view Portugal not simply as a market, but as a strategic manufacturing hub for European supply chains. A successful Gripen program partnership would demonstrate Nordic confidence in Portuguese aerospace capabilities, manufacturing discipline, and European strategic autonomy—creating a template for deeper industrial collaboration between the Nordic countries and Portugal.
2026: Saab formally expresses interest in establishing production partnership with OGMA for Gripen fighter jet components and systems, pending Portuguese Air Force procurement decision.
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