The Swedish air force (SwAF) will deploy seven of its latest Saab JAS 39C/D Gripen fighters to Nellis AFB, Nev., this month to take part in the U.S.-led realistic air combat exercise Red Flag 08-3.

This marks the first time a regular JAS 39 squadron flies in Red Flag, because the 2006 participation by Swedish Gripens in Red Flag Alaska was handled by a dedicated tactical development unit.

The Gripen detachment, flying a four-ship in every Red Flag mission during the two-week-long exercise, will perform offensive counter air, air interdiction, close air support and dynamic targeting operations as part of the main Blue Force.

But the SwAF will not be bringing their new Saab/Terma-built external reconnaissance pods due to availability issues with the eight pods delivered so far, officers say.

The Swedish unit will comprise 14 pilots and approximately 70 support personnel, says Lieut. Col. Carl-Johan (Klute) Edstrom, commanding officer of 2nd Sqdn., F21 Wing at Sweden's northernmost fighter base here.

Edstrom's unit has been on 10-day notice to support the Swedish-led Nordic Battle Group, which was on high-readiness alert under the European Union's Battle Group scheme during the first half of this year.

Known as SE 01 (for Stridsflygenhet 01, Air Combat Unit 01), the high-readiness mission rotates every year within Sweden's fighter force of four frontline squadrons.

According to Edstrom, his unit had worked up for the SE 01 role by January and was therefore most suited to take on the Red Flag opportunity when this materialized.

The squadron's focus has been on the SwAF's new Rafael/Zeiss Litening III targeting pod and GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bombs. Seven Litening pods are now in service with a similar number expected to arrive next year, says Col. Torgny Falthammar, chief of air combat requirements in the Swedish armed forces headquarters.

At Nellis, the unit will drop up to eight live GBU-12s while it will also use live 27-mm. ammunition to strafe ground targets, says Edstrom.