This restriction was dropped in 1993 due to airspace violations from the nearby Yugoslavian internal conflict on its southern border, AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles were purchased. They bought refurbished J 35D which was the last Austrian Air Force fighter with two internal cannon due to the restriction in the Austrian State Treaty of 1955 of not being allowed to carry air-to-air missiles. Danish F-35 aircraft were retired in 1993.įinland updated its 35XS fleet with new avionics, cockpit displays, navigational/attack systems and electronic countermeasures during the 1990s but finally retired the Draken in 2000.Īustria was the last country to operate the Draken in military service.
#SAAB DRAKEN SERIES#
The Danish Drakens are so far the heaviest of the series to have been in service. In 1985, the Austrian Air Force purchased 24 J 35D s reconditioned by Saab, designated J 35Ö.Īll Drakens are interceptors with limited air-to-ground capability, with the sole exception of the Danish Drakens, which are strike aircraft capable of carrying AGM-12 Bullpup missiles, advanced "jammers", and increased internal and external fuel stores. Export customers included Denmark and Finland. The Swedish Drakens were officially retired in December 1998, although the type remains in limited numbers in both military and civilian versions.
The extension program was to keep the Draken flying into the 2000s, but due to cutbacks and high maintenance costs the Draken was eventually phased out. The J 35J was a service-life extension program since the delivery of the new Saab JAS 39 Gripen was still in the development stage and suffering from delivery delays. The last was the J 35J version, in the late 1980s, although by then, the Draken had been almost totally replaced by the Saab 37 Viggen in Swedish service. The J 35 Draken design underwent several upgrades. These aircraft were retired in the 1990s and replaced by the Saab Gripen.Įx-RDAF RF-35XD N217FR operated by the National Test Pilot School takes off from the Mojave Spaceport. The last model built was the J 35F, the final variant to remain in Swedish service. The early models were intended purely for air defence. Sweden's Draken fleet came in six different variants while two Draken models were offered for export. It entered service in 1960 with the Swedish Air Force 644 Saab Drakens were built for Sweden as well as other European nations. The second prototype, equipped with an afterburner, unintentionally broke the sound barrier on its first flight while climbing.Īlthough not designed to be a dogfighter, the J 35 Draken proved to have good instantaneous turn capability and was a very capable fighter. The first prototype, not fitted with an afterburner, made its maiden flight on 25 October 1955. The 210's successful testing results led to an order for three full-size Draken prototypes. The Saab 210 tested the concept of the double delta, first flying on 21 January 1952. The double-delta shape was so revolutionary that it warranted the only sub-scale test aircraft built in Sweden: the Saab 210, unofficially nicknamed "Lilldraken" (the little draken). The Draken could deploy a drag chute to reduce its landing distance. A ram turbine, under the nose, provided emergency power and the engine had a built-in emergency starter unit. Propulsion was provided by a single Svenska Flygmotor RM 6B/C turbojet (Rolls-Royce Avon 200/300). The inner wing has an 80° angle for high speed performance, while the outer 60° wing gives good performance at low speeds.
In September 1949, the Swedish Defence Material Administration issued a request for a fighter/interceptor aircraft, and work began at Saab the same year.ĭraken's design incorporated a distinctive "double-delta" configuration, with one delta wing within another larger delta. Other demanding requirements were the capability to operate from reinforced public roads used as part of wartime airbases, and for refuelling/rearming to be carried out in no more than ten minutes, by conscripts with minimal training. Although other interceptors such as the US Air Force's F-104 Starfighter were being conceived during the same period, Saab's "Draken" would have to undertake a combat role unique to Sweden. As the jet era started, Sweden foresaw the need for a jet fighter that could intercept bombers at high altitude and also successfully engage fighters.
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