Mirage 2000 or Rafale?

During SAAF 75 staged during 1995, a number of foreign aviation companies contended for the new SAAF fighter. Given the SAAF's excellent record with Dassault, it was quite a surprise when the SAAF announced the Gripen was selected as the future fighter.

	The Mirage 2000 was displayed with 2 Sqdn badges.
2 Sqdn badge.

The first SAAF Gripen was rolled-out at the Gripen Factory in Sweden on 28 October 2005 and handed over to the SAAF.  After initial flights in Sweden the aircraft will be shipped to South Africa to start flight trials at the Test Flight and Development Centre in 2006. It is hoped this aircraft will be one of the flying displays at AAD 2006 during September 2006.

First SAAF Gripen unveiled.