Event took place at the Centro Militar de Convenções e Hospedagem da Aeronáutica (CEMCOHA)
Air Force Agency, by Lieutenant Letícia Faria and Major Oliveira Lima
The Sweden-Brazil Innovation Week 2022 is taking place since Monday (11/07) and continues until next Friday (11/11), with activities in São Paulo (SP), Campinas (SP), Brasília (DF), and Rio de Janeiro (RJ). The opening ceremony took place at the Centro Militar de Convenções e Hospedagem da Aeronáutica (CEMCOHA), in Salvador (BA), and was attended by Swedish and Brazilian authorities, among them, representatives of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB).
The event, which is hosted by the Swedish Embassy and partner entities, provides a platform for strategic collaboration between the two countries in the areas of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI). The cooperation between Brazil and Sweden, in the aeronautical field, is intense and has taken place since 2015, when negotiations began about the acquisition of the Gripen aircraft – with which the FAB already has four units on Brazilian soil.
Meeting of the High Level Group on Aeronautics
The High Level Group on Aeronautics – in which FAB has representatives from the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology (DCTA), the Aeronautical Institute of Technology (ITA), and the Seventh Sub-Chief of the Air Force Staff (EMAER) – met on Monday in the Bahian capital to discuss cooperation in this strategic sector for Sweden and Brazil. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Swedish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), Ministry of Business, Energy and Industry, and partner institutions and companies, including SAAB and Embraer.
Since its creation, the binational thematic working group has, among its competencies, the definition of guidelines and cooperation strategies in the aeronautical sector; the facilitation and systematization of the dialogue between universities, science and technology institutes, industry and public agencies involved; the identification of opportunities and initiatives; the articulation of support for the development of programs, studies and other cooperative activities; and the definition of goals to be achieved by the Executive Committee (EC).
The Swedish Ambassador to Brazil, Karin Wallensteen, was at the opening event and highlighted the need for the meeting to maintain the negotiations about the technological evolution in the aeronautical field. “This is an excellent opportunity to meet after the pandemic. It is a chance for us to strengthen relations again. We can create relations, links not between countries, but between people, who will work cooperating with technology, artificial intelligence and aeronautics with different areas of innovation between Brazil and Sweden,” he said.
According to the Executive Secretary of MCTI, Sergio Freitas de Almeida, the moment of reunion is necessary, especially for decisions and discussions to be made in person. “It is one of the most important groups that Brazil has in collaboration with another country. It is a very full agenda, basically focused on Aeronautics, on the Gripen fighter jet project and a set of other activities that involve ITA, Aeronautics and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovations,” she says.
The State Secretary for Business and Industry, from the Swedish Ministry of Enterprise and Innovation, Sara Modig, also commented on the return of the meetings. “I think it is very important to meet face to face. I feel a good energy from people talking to each other, which would not have happened if we had met online,” she added.
The Director General of DCTA, Air Lieutenant Brigadier Maurício Augusto Silveira de Medeiros, who represented the FAB Commander, Air Lieutenant Brigadier Carlos de Almeida Baptista Junior, emphasized that the meeting is necessary and essential for the bilateral relations between the countries. “From the moment that the Air Force acquired the F-39 aircraft, for sure our approach in the aeronautical field was much closer. And there was the idea of creating this High Level Group, to deal specifically with aeronautical issues and, today, we see how this cooperation has expanded, based on the triple helix, formed by the government, academia, and industry, thus expanding the interest in unmanned aircraft,” highlights the General Officer.
In the opportunity, collaborations between Brazilian and Swedish institutions in academic mobility programs, binational projects in the scope of the Air Domain Study (ADS) were reported. There was also the awarding of the winners of the SARC/BARINet Aerospace Competition – an international competition involving groups from Brazil and Sweden – whose project is related to fighting forest fires. The new Brazil-Sweden academic mobility program was also signed and a professor from Linköping University was certified for a chair in Artificial Intelligence in Brazil.
The authorities that make up the High Level Group visited the Integrated Manufacturing and Technology Center (SENAI-CIMATEC), the innovation granary of the state of Bahia.
Photos: Sergeant Figueira / CECOMSAER – Video: Sergeant André Souza / CECOMSAER *** Translated by the DEFCONPress FYI Team ***