(Bloomberg) -- The Royal Thai Air Force will purchase an undisclosed number of Swedish Gripen fighter jets to replace its aging fleet of US-made F-16s, according to its statement on Tuesday.
Thailand will go with Saab AB’s JAS 39 Gripen E/F jets to replace the F-16 A/B’s that have been in service since 1988, the air force said. The decision was made after careful consideration as the Southeast Asian nation seeks a value approach to modernizing its military in a way that will also boost “self-dependency.”
“The new fighter jet replacement must possess better capability than other fighter jets that RTAF has in the fleet,” the statement said. “The commission has a careful consideration for the past 10 months and agreed that Gripen fighter jet has a capability to meet our strategic mission.”
While it did not elaborate on the number of planes it would buy or how much would be spent, the air force previously said it would seek about 19 billion baht ($559 million) from the state budget to upgrade its fleet. A committee was tasked to choose between procuring Gripen’s or F-16 Block 70 jets made by Lockheed Martin Corp.
The decision comes more than a year since the US — a treaty ally of Thailand — rejected a bid by Thailand to immediately purchase F-35A stealth fighter jets, citing a long waiting period and requirement of heavy investment in infrastructure and training.
Thailand, like much of Southeast Asia, is seeking ways to modernize its military on a budget. The region’s second-biggest economy has been struggling for years with a slow growth rate and has persistently under-performed compared to its peers.
--With assistance from Anuchit Nguyen.
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