From: moose@guppy.tds.kth.se ((]ke Nordin))
Subject: SAAB J35 story (long, was Re: Beer commercial)
Keywords: SAAB J35 draken, Miller's beer, operators, history
Organization: Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1992 16:31:30 GMT


From moose@guppy.tds.kth.se ((]ke Nordin))


In article <1992Aug25.195145.6834@aw2.fsl.ca.boeing.com>, sci.aeronautics gcr8829@aw2.fsl.ca.boeing.com (Gustav C. Rettke) writes:
|> From article <BtIB45.63G@ais.org>, by draper@ais.org (Patrick Draper):
|> > I saw a  beer commercial on TV this weekend and it featured what appeared to
|> > be one of the cranked arrow configured F-16's. I could be wrong though...
|> > 
|> I saw it and it wasn't an F-16.   It was a Swedish SAAB Draken. Draken came
|> out in the late 50's and enjoyed a fairly long production run until replaced
|> in the mid-late 60's by the Viggen.

I haven't seen Miller's commercial. Which networks carry it? Has it been
run on CNN or MTV, those are the only US channels i get. I really want to
see it, my proud little nationalistic heart pounds in anticipation! 8^}

Anyway, SAAB Draken (swedish for dragon) is the last dedicated fighter SAAB
has built. It has got a story all it's own. 

It was conceived by the young designer Erik Bratt in the early fifties as 
a development of the delta-concept. (It has got a "double delta" wing
planform, were the air intakes turn into a slim, long delta section
to which short wing stubs are attached at the rear.) Resistance from
the top brass at SAAB and Flygvapnet (the swedish air force) threated to
can the project: "we're not gonna fly a plane without a tail!"

Hovewer, the legend tells that the concept was developed by a little group
in their spare time. When more people at SAAB got used to the ideas, the
project got recognized and SAAB decided to build a reduced size test plane.
I believe that this plane made it's virgin flight in 1957, but i might
as well be confused here, it may have flown earlier.

During that time, SAAB worked on a fighter project with support from
Flygvapnet. It was in the early design stages and various configurations
were studied, none without a tail. When the potential of mr Bratt's 
double delta was recognized, that fighter project became project Draken.

SAAB actually had a separate set of drawings with that infamous tail, 
without which it would never have got the support needed from key staff
members of Flygvapnet. As fait accompli had it, Flygvapnet found
themselves having bought an excellent tailless fighter.
(end of legend 8^)

I don't remeber when the full-scale J35A Draken made it's virgin flight,
But i think the first J35 Wing got their machines in the spring of 1961.
Some ten revisions of avionics later, they still operate one wing of them
(F10 in Aengelholm).

|> They were exported in Europe somewhat.  The one on the commercial must have
|> been a surplused one ala the Vampire's and other European marks that are
|> showing up at air shows here in the states.

The Finnish and Austrian air forces operate them. The Austrian affair is
rather recent and was heavily criticised, since the design was considered
out of date. However, it was cheap, proved in arctic conditions and supplied
by a neutral country. Austrian Draken's are the only one i know of who have
been engaged in a war-like incident: The (former) Yugoslav air force's
slovenian campaign was partly conducted from Austrian airspace and two Draken
confronted a few MIG-29. The Draken's were unarmed and decided (wisely) not
to press matters further.

SAAB 37 Viggen has been operated together with SAAB J35 Draken in two 
decades. Viggen's virgin flight was in 1967 if memory serves me. The
ground support version (AJ37) entered service in the early seventies, closely
followed by trainer (SK37) and surveillance (S37) versions. Problems with
engine performance, armament and avionics delayed the fighter version (JA37)
almost a decade, it has never replaced J35 Draken completely. I suppose 
budget constraints are the reason, not weaknesses in the JA37 design. The
fighter version has got a weird jet engine, it must be the largest 
single-engine fighter ever produced with it's 120 kN (12 000 kg) thrust.

|> A Plane Buff

As you can see, mee too!

I do of course not have any affiliations with neither SAAB nor the
Swedish, Finnish or Austrian air forces. I do like airplanes, though.

________________________________________________________________________
\oAke Nordin                                  Internet: moose@tds.kth.se
Dept. of Telecom and Computer Systems (TDS)   Telephone: +46 8 790 78 99
The Royal Institute of Technology (KTH)       Telefax  : +46 8  24 77 84
P.O. box 700 43,  S-100 44 Stockholm, Sweden  PhoneHome: +46 8 717 47 16

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