Saab Draken
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Saabdraken.jpg
The Saab J35 Draken (Dragon) or Saab 35 is a Swedish fighter aircraft manufactured by Saab between 1955 and 1974. Draken was built to replace Saab Tunnan and, later, Saab Lansen.
The J35 was the first European-built combat aircraft with true supersonic capability.
Development
As the jet era started Sweden saw the need for a jet fighter that could intercept bombers at high altitude, but also take on fighters. The concept is similar to the US Air Force' F-104 Starfighter. In September 1949, the FMV issued a request for such an aircraft and work began the same year. Other requirements were the capability to able to operate from public roads used as temporary airfields, and re-fueling/re-arming to be carried out by conscripts with little training, in no more than 10 minutes.
Its wings have a distinctive "double-delta" configuration, with one delta wing within another larger delta. The inner wing has an 80° angle for high speed performance, while the outer 60° wing gives good performance at low speeds. Propulsion is provided by a single Svenska Flygmotor RM6B/C turbojet (Rolls-Royce Avon 200/300). A ram turbine under the nose provides emergency power, and the engine has a built-in emergency starter unit. Draken has a drag chute to reduce landing speed.
Performance
The aircraft had good performance for its day when it entered service in 1960. Although not designed to be a dogfighter, Draken proved to have good instant turn capability and was a very capable fighter.
The J35 Draken underwent several upgrades. The last was the J35J version in the early 1990s. By then it had been almost totally replaced by Saab Viggen and Saab Gripen in Swedish service, although it remains in limited numbers in both military and civilian versions. Special models has also been exported to Denmark and Finland. In 1985 the Austrian air force purchased 24 Saab-Scania reconditioned Drakar. In the United States, the National Test Pilot School (NTPS) operates six Drakar that were formerly in Danish service.
See also: Swedish Air Force, List of military aircraft of Sweden
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