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| CGI 0f the SAAB Swordfish MPA |
By: Mike Yeo
SINGAPORE — Maritime Patrol Aircraft, or MPA, based on business jet platforms have taken prominence at the IMDEX Asia maritime and defense exhibition in Singapore, with manufacturers touting capability at lower cost, along with willingness to customize their solutions to customer requirements as their main selling points.
Saab and IAI devoted significant amounts of floor space at their IMDEX Asia booths to their products, the Swordfish and EL/I-3360, respectively, with both emphasizing their willingness to customize and fine-tune their aircraft according to customer requirements.
Saab recently announced a significant increase in the stores carrying capacity of the Swordfish, with the Bombardier Global Express 6000 business jet it is based on now being cleared to carry up to four RBS-15 anti-ship missiles or six lightweight torpedoes on four external hard points.
It also says that the high level of commonality between the Swordfish and the Globaleye airborne early warning and control aircraft it is currently building for the United Arab Emirates means that development work on the Swordfish is already 70 percent complete.
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