JAS39C

JAS39C

Phantom FGR.2

JAS39C

Phantom FGR.2

Britain

VIII Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
12.7	12.7	12.7

Class:

Fighter

Jet fighter

Research:410 000

Purchase:1 100 000

Show in game

Description

During the early 1980s, the South African Air Force (SAAF) was looking for a replacement for its aging Cheetah fleet, which was a locally upgraded version of the French Mirage III. The Cheetahs were subject to an arms embargo due to the apartheid regime, which limited their availability and effectiveness. In 1999, after a long and controversial procurement process, South Africa signed a contract with Saab for 26 Gripens (17 JAS39C and 9 JAS39D), becoming the first export customer of the type. The delivery of the South African Gripens started in 2008 and was completed in 2012. Since then, the South African Gripens have been involved in several operations, both at home and abroad. In 2010, they secured the airspace during the FIFA World Cup hosted by South Africa. In 2013, they provided air support for South African peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and also participated in the funeral of Nelson Mandela, the former president and anti-apartheid leader. However, the South African Gripens have faced some challenges in their service, such as budget constraints, maintenance issues, and political controversies. Due to the high cost of operating the jets, the SAAF has limited their flying hours and reduced their operational readiness. The SAAF has also struggled to maintain the jets' spare parts and technical support, which have been affected by the corruption allegations against Saab. Furthermore, the Gripen deal has been criticized by some sectors of society as unnecessary and wasteful, especially in light of the country's social and economic problems. These issues became more evident when South Africa had to ground its fleet of Gripens in September 2021 due to budget cuts and maintenance problems, which led to concerns about the country's air defense capabilities.

The JAS39C Gripen was introduced in Update "Air Superiority". As the first South African jet in the tree, it proves worthy of its place due to its exceptional flight performance and loadout capabilities. It has a high-performance engine and a high thrust-to-weight ratio, which gives it excellent acceleration and climb rate, as well as superb agility and energy retention. It can also carry a variety of weapons, including guided bombs, AGM-65 Mavericks, and AIM-9M Sidewinders. However, its main drawback is its Skyflash radar missiles, which are inferior to other top-tier missiles in terms of range, speed, and manoeuvrability.

General info

Flight performance

Air brakes

Allows you to dramatically reduce the flight speed by releasing special flaps

Max speed

at 11 000 m2 240 km/h

Turn time24 s

Max altitude14 500 m

EngineSvenska Flygmotor RM12

Type

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight60 t

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics	Max speed (km/h at _,___ m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	___	___	14500	__._	__._	__._	__._	___
Upgraded	___	___		__._	__._	__._	__._

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear	Drogue chute
X	X	X	✓	X	X

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
1,470	620	-	-	-	~12	~5

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 519	< 700	< 1,470	-

Engine performance

Engine			Aircraft mass
Engine name		Number	Basic mass		Wing loading (full fuel)
Svenska Flygmotor RM12		1	6,865 kg		307 kg/m2
Engine characteristics			Mass with fuel (no weapons load)				Max Gross Weight
Weight (each)	Type		9m fuel	20m fuel	30m fuel	32m fuel
1,054 kg	Afterburning low-bypass turbofan		7,567 kg	8,308 kg	9,032 kg	9,205 kg	13,906 kg
Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB)			Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (WEP)
Condition	100%	WEP	9m fuel	20m fuel	30m fuel	32m fuel	MGW
Stationary	5,100 kgf	7,528 kgf	0.99	0.91	0.83	0.82	0.54
Optimal	5,100 kgf (0 km/h)	10,918 kgf (1,250 km/h)	1.44	1.31	1.21	1.19	0.79

Survivability and armour

Flares/Chaff

Aircraft countermeasures to distract IR and radar-guided missiles and also AA radar

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear620 km/h

Examine the survivability of the aircraft. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, whether the fuel tanks are armoured, etc. Describe the armour, if there is any, and also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 696 → 4 421

RB7 782 → 12 762

SB9 164 → 15 028

Total cost of modifications309 000

472 000

Talisman cost3 200

Crew training310 000

Experts1 100 000

Aces3 600

Research Aces1 350 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

90 / 320 / 500 %

256 / 256 / 256 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Compressor Research: 10 000 Cost: 15 000 410 New boosters Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 Wings repair Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 450 Engine Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810	Fuselage repair Research: 10 000 Cost: 15 000 410 Airframe Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 Cover Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 450	Flares/Chaff Research: 10 000 Cost: 15 000 410 akan_85_belt_pack Research: 10 000 Cost: 15 000 410 AIM-9L Research: 10 000 Cost: 15 000 410 LITENING II Research: 10 000 Cost: 15 000 410 Flares/Chaff BOL Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 Skyflash Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 Mk82 Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 GBU-12 Research: 12 000 Cost: 18 000 490 G-suit Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 450 akan_85_new_gun Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 450 AIM-9M Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 450 Mk83 Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 450 GBU-16 Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 450 EFS Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810 NVD Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810 AGM-65B Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810 GBU-24 Research: 20 000 Cost: 31 000 810

Armaments

Ballistic Computer
CCIP (Guns)	CCIP (Rockets)	CCIP (Bombs)	CCRP (Bombs)	Lead indicator

Offensive armament

The JAS39C is armed with:

• 1 x 27 mm Akan m/85 cannon, belly-mounted (120 rpg)
• 92 x large calibre countermeasures

Suspended armament

The JAS39C can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
277 kg GBU-12 Paveway II bombs		1†	1†			1†	1†
500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs		2	2			2	2
500 lb Mk 82 Snakeye bombs		2	2			2	2
957 kg GBU-10 Paveway II bombs			1†			1†
1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs		1	1			1	1
1,092 lb GBU-16 Paveway II bombs		1†	1†			1†	1†
2,000 lb GBU-24 Paveway III bombs			1†			1†
AGM-65B missiles		1	1			1	1
AIM-9L Sidewinder missiles	1	1*	1*			1*	1*	1
AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles	1	1*	1*			1*	1*	1
Skyflash missiles		1	1			1	1
Countermeasures		160*	160*			160*	160*
LITENING II targeting pod				1†
1,100 l drop tanks					1
Maximum permissible weight imbalance: 1,250 kg
* Countermeasures can be equipped with Aim9L/M missiles on the same hardpoint † LITENING II pod must be equipped when equipping guided bombs

Default weapon presets

1 x 1,100 l drop tank 2 x AIM-9L Sidewinder missiles 6 x AIM-9L Sidewinder missiles 6 x AIM-9L Sidewinder missiles + 640 x countermeasures 6 x AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles 6 x AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles + 640 x countermeasures 4 x Skyflash missiles 640 x countermeasures 8 x 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs (4,000 lb total) 8 x 500 lb Mk 82 Snakeye bombs (4,000 lb total) 4 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs (4,000 lb total) 4 x AGM-65B missiles 4 x 277 kg GBU-12 Paveway II bombs (1,108 kg total) 4 x 1,092 lb GBU-16 Paveway II bombs (4,368 lb total) 2 x 2,000 lb GBU-24 Paveway III bombs (4,000 lb total)

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the aircraft, the features of using aircraft in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Pros and cons

Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in the bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".

Pros:

Cons:

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.