Saab 35 Draken

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saab_35_Draken

The Saab 35 Draken (IPA: ['dr???k?n]; "the kite" or "the dragon") was a Swedish
fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Saab between 1955 and 1974. It
was the first fully supersonic aircraft to be deployed in Western Europe.

The Draken was developed during the 1940s and 1950s to replace Sweden's first
generation of jet-powered fighter aircraft, the Saab J 29 Tunnan and, later, the
fighter variant (J 32B) of the Saab 32 Lansen. It featured an innovative double
delta wing; in order to test this previously-unexplored aerodynamic feature, a
sub-scale test aircraft, the Saab 210, was produced and flown. Developed in
Sweden, the Draken was introduced into service with the Swedish Air Force (SAF)
on 8 March 1960. Early models were intended purely to perform air defence
missions, the type being considered to be a capable dogfighter for the era.

The Draken functioned as an effective supersonic fighter aircraft of the Cold
War period. In Swedish service, it underwent several upgrades, the ultimate of
these being the J 35J model. By the 1980s, the SAF's Drakens had largely been
replaced by the more advanced Saab 37 Viggen fighter, while the introduction of
the more capable Saab JAS 39 Gripen fighter was expected in service within a
decade, although delayed. As a consequence of cutbacks and high maintenance
costs, the SAF opted to retire the Draken during December 1999. The type was
also exported to Austria, Denmark, Finland, and to the United States; the last
operated the type as a training aircraft for test pilots.

The Saab 35 Draken is a fighter aircraft, equipped with a distinctive double
delta wing. According to Flight International, it is difficult to differentiate
between what constituted as the fuselage and what would be defined as being of
the wing. The fuselage has a circular section, and the inboard portion of the
wing is a large-chord surface which extended aft of the engine intakes; it was
possible to dispense with a tailplane, and the overall design is one of relative
cleanliness. Draken's design incorporated a distinctive double delta
configuration, which featured one delta wing within another larger delta. The
leading edge of the inner wing had an 80° angle for high-speed performance,
while the outer wing, swept at 60°, provided for good performance at low speeds.


Role
Fighter aircraft

National origin
Sweden

Manufacturer
Saab

First flight
25 October 1955

Introduction
8 March 1960

Retired
2005 (Austria)

Status
Retired from military service

Primary users
Swedish Air Force
Austrian Air Force
Finnish Air Force
Royal Danish Air Force

Produced
1955–1974

Number built
651

Variants
Saab 210

At the end of 1959, deliveries of the J 35A Draken commenced to the SAF, the
first unit to receive the type being fighter wing F13, stationed at Norrköping.
During March 1960, the Drakens of unit F13 participated in a three-day long
exercise, flying by night and day while operating under a state of "highest
readiness" throughout. According to Flight International, the introduction to
service of the J 35A was "very smooth", and that the scramble and turn-round
times had been found to be "most satisfactory". By the end of 1960, multiple
wings had been equipped with the Draken and had attained operational status.

All Drakens functioned as interceptors with limited air-to-ground capability;
the sole exception to this rule was the Danish Drakens, which functioned as
strike aircraft and were capable of carrying a mixture of AGM-12 Bullpup
air-to-ground missiles, electronic countermeasures, and increased internal and
external fuel storage. The Danish Drakens were the heaviest of the series to
have flown. During 1993, the last of the Danish J 35 fleet were retired.

Specifications (J 35F Draken)

General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 15.35 m (50 ft 4 in)
Wingspan: 9.42 m (30 ft 10 in)
Height: 3.89 m (12 ft 9 in)
Wing area: 49.20 m² (529.6 ft²)
Empty weight: 7,865 kg (17,340 lb)
Loaded weight: 11,000 kg (24,250 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 16,000 kg (35,273 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Volvo Flygmotor RM6C afterburning turbojet Dry thrust: 56.5 kN
(12,787 lbf)
Thrust with afterburner: 78.4 kN (17,637 lbf)


Performance
Maximum speed: Mach 2.0 (1990s improvements)
Range: 2,750 km (1,709 mi) with external drop tanks
Service ceiling: 20,000 m (65,600 ft)
Rate of climb: 199 m/s (39,370 ft/min)
Wing loading: 231.6 kg/m² (47.4 lb/ft²)
Thrust/weight: 0.70
Takeoff roll: 800 m (2,623 ft)

Armament

Guns: 1× or 2× 30 mm M-55 ADEN cannon with 100 rounds per gun (in Saab 35F one
cannon was omitted to fit avionics needed for Falcon missile integration,
earlier variants and export variants retained twin guns.)
Hardpoints: for fuel tanks or ordnance with a capacity of 2,900 kg (6,393 lb)
and provisions to carry combinations of: Rockets: 2× 75 mm air-to-ground rocket
pods ventrally or 12× 135 mm rockets on six underwing pylons
Missiles: Rb 24, Rb 27 and Rb 28 air-to-air missiles
Bombs: The Danish export version, (F-35), was modified according to NATO
standards and was fitted with 1,000lb bomb hardpoints

------

https://theaviationist.com/tag/saab-35-draken/

The Saab J-35 Draken is one of the most famous Swedish aircraft, ever.

However, its particular double delta wing configuration was something never seen
before in the ’50s and, in order to move towards that new shape, a special
test-bed scale model was developed.

The experimental aircraft, that was given the designation Saab 210 Lill-Draken,
was scaled down to 70 percent of the planned size and was then used to test the
low speeds flight characteristics and to validate the assumptions made before
undertaking full-scale construction.

The weird flying machine (a flying saucer-plane-car hybrid) made its maiden
flight on Jan. 21, 1952, piloted by Bengt Olow

According to SAAB, their first and only experimental aircraft in history
(currently on display at the Air Force museum in Linköping, Sweden) “performed
around 1,000 test flights over four years. The results provided valuable
experience during development of the Saab 35 Draken.”


*