Today Sweden is one of the few European countries that can independently design and launch a combat aircraft from scratch. In this regard, this is an atypical European state. The Swedish industry covers 75-80 percent of the needs of the armed forces in weapons and military equipment. For a country that remains neutral, these are excellent indicators. The flagship of the Swedish aircraft industry is the Saab JAS 39 Gripen multirole fighter. The aircraft is sold for export and is able to compete with the models of the leading aviation powers. The first model to be successful in the international market was the SAAB 35 Draken supersonic fighter, developed in Sweden in the mid-1950s.
The appearance of the aircraft SAAB 35 Draken
Let us first allow ourselves a lyrical digression. The plane with the beautiful name "Draken" ("Dragon") was distinguished by its memorable appearance. The layout of the aircraft was radically new, and the main secret was the Bartini wing - a delta-shaped delta wing with a double sweep. This wing made the aircraft so recognizable. For many years, prefabricated models of the SAAB 35 were produced in huge quantities in the USSR and the countries of the Warsaw Pact. In the Soviet Union, such models cost 60 kopecks each, so many boys and adults who were fond of modeling managed to assemble their own Swedish dragon.
The idea of building a new supersonic fighter was already in the Swedish air in the late 1940s. The order for the design of the aircraft was issued by the Royal Swedish Air Force, which felt the need for a supersonic fighter-interceptor (speed up to 1.5M). The main purpose of the new combat aircraft was to fight enemy bombers that flew at high subsonic speeds. Naturally, the creation of the fighter was entrusted to the Swedish aerospace and defense company SAAB, a monopoly in the development of Swedish aircraft. Already in August 1949, the new aircraft acquired the factory index FM250 and the world-famous name - Draken.
The aircraft had strict requirements for climb rate, flight altitude and supersonic flight speed. The appetites of the military grew, and soon it was about flying at speeds of Mach 1, 7-1, 8. Armament requirements were highlighted separately. The new fighter was supposed to receive cannon armament, as well as the ability to use guided air-to-air missiles and unguided missiles of various calibers. The Swedish military hoped to receive a new aircraft with a complex of weapons that would help the pilot cope with the tasks of intercepting enemy aircraft without guidance from the ground. A separate line was the requirements for the availability of repair and maintenance of the aircraft. The emphasis was on the minimum possible number of maintenance personnel and ease of access to structural elements, and the work had to be carried out in all weather conditions. The possibility of a fighter taking off from runways up to 3,000 meters long and up to 13 meters wide was also negotiated, this requirement opened up at least 400 new runways for the Swedish military, which were used as public roads. The set of requirements voiced presented a daunting task for Swedish designers, but SAAB engineers coped with it.
In order to meet all the requirements of the military, some of which contradicted each other, the Swedish designers turned to unconventional solutions. For example, the high speed of the future fighter was to be combined with maintaining high maneuverability, as well as the possibility of using runways for takeoff and landing, which were also used by the Swedish subsonic fighters of the previous generation - Saab 29 Tunnan. The all-weather requirements put forward by the Swedish military required the installation of additional equipment and instruments on the aircraft, and the requirements for the rate of climb, on the contrary, assumed the maximum possible reduction in the mass of the fighter.
Already at the design stage, it became clear that it makes no sense to refer to the classical scheme. It was not possible to place the necessary equipment, fuel and weapons in a glider with limited dimensions. For this reason, SAAB engineers turned to the emerging delta wing design. After the Swedish designers carried out a weight estimate of the future fighter, a new problem appeared - the excessive rear alignment of the aircraft. The designers were required to make a decision again: either to engage in lengthening the nose of the fighter, or to come up with something new. And such a solution was found - the Bartini wing is a delta-shaped (triangular) double swept wing. A triangular wing is lighter and more rigid than both swept and straight wings, designers turn to such a shape when the aircraft needs to provide flight speeds of Mach 2 and higher.
In 1953, SAAB received an order from the military for the construction of three prototypes of the future aircraft. This was preceded by a series of tests to validate the chosen concept and layout on the smaller subsonic Saab 210. The first full-size prototype of the SAAB 35 Draken to be built took to the skies on 25 October 1955. The very next year, the first operational batch of fighters that received the J35A index went into mass production. The flight of the first serial "Dragon" took place in Sweden in February 1958, and in 1960 the aircraft was officially adopted by the Swedish Air Force.
For the Swedish Air Force, seven different models of this fighter were created, of which one Sk 35C was a training two-seater aircraft, the other, the S 35E, was a reconnaissance aircraft, the other five remained interceptor fighters (versions A, B, D, F, J). The most advanced model of the "Dragon" was the modernization of the SAAB J35J Draken, according to this project from 1987 to 1991 it was possible to remake 62 fighters, which remained in service with the Swedish Air Force until 1999. The modernized interceptor received a new radar, avionics, a friend or foe recognition system, additional infrared sensors, and a warning system for a dangerous approach to the ground. Outwardly, the interceptor differed from its predecessors by the presence of two additional pylons located under the wings.
Design features of the SAAB 35 Draken fighter
The supersonic fighter SAAB 35 Draken was a mid-wing with a double swept delta wing. This is a single-seat fighter-interceptor, which, if necessary, was also used for ground attacks. The aircraft had an all-metal structure, resistant to overload. The maximum overload was estimated at 8g, and the destructive structure - 20g. Preparing a fighter for an hour-long flight took 20 man-hours from the operating personnel.
The fuselage of the SAAB 35 Draken fighter consisted of a wing center section with working skin and the fuselage itself, in front of which a radar was installed. The fuselage contained a pressurized cockpit with an air conditioning system, equipment and weapons compartments, a compartment for accommodating the front landing gear, fuel tanks and a tail landing gear. Structurally, the fuselage included two parts - nose and tail. In addition to the main parts, it included a gargrot, air intakes, landing gear flaps, a cockpit lamp (on versions with one pilot it was folded up and back, and on a training "twin" - to the right side). The nose of the fuselage of the Swedish fighter was combined with the center section, to which was attached a turbojet engine, which received an afterburner. In the center section there were also aircraft fuel tanks, various equipment and part of the weapons, as well as compartments designed to accommodate the main landing gear. On the aft fuselage of the fighter-interceptor, there were special mounts designed for the suspension of weapons or an external fuel tank. There were four brake flaps directly in front of the engine afterburner.
The keel of the fighter was connected to the fuselage and center section with bolts. In the upper part of the fuselage there was a gargrot, it began immediately behind the cockpit, pipelines and cables were laid inside the gargrot. Its cladding panel was made easily removable, which facilitated the process of maintenance and routine maintenance. In the gargrot, there were air intakes for cooling various aircraft systems, and in the tail section there was a compartment in which the braking parachute was stored.
A feature of the "Dragon" was a delta wing of variable sweep. On the leading edge and in the near-fuselage areas, the sweep angle was 80 degrees, in the end areas of the wing - 57 degrees. The landing gear of the aircraft is of a normal scheme, three-pillar. The nose landing gear was retracted into the fuselage forward in the direction of flight, the main ones were retracted in the wing console in the direction from the fighter fuselage. After the appearance of an engine with a more powerful afterburner on the fighter, the tail landing gear appeared on the Dragon, which also retracted into its own niche. An additional landing gear protected the bottom of the fuselage, which was important when landing the aircraft in the field.
The fuel system of the SAAB 35 Draken fighter included tanks in the fuselage (soft - rear and hard - front), as well as caisson tanks in the wing with a total capacity of 4 thousand liters of fuel. Realizing that the placement of fuel has a significant effect on the position of the center of gravity of the aircraft, the designers created a special electronic-mechanical metering system that regulated the fuel consumption.
Most SAAB 35 Draken fighters were powered by the Avon 300 series (Volvo Flygmotor RM-6C), a Swedish licensed copy of the British Rolls-Royce Avon RA.24 engine. At the same time, the turbojet engine received a Swedish-made afterburner. With this engine, the interceptor successfully stormed the speed threshold of Mach two, accelerating at an altitude of 2150 km / h.
The fighter's armament consisted of one or two 30-mm automatic aircraft cannons (the stock of shells was 100 per barrel). Also, the car had 9 suspension points for various weapons. Including guided air-to-air missiles, the most common were licensed American-made Rb.27 missiles (American AIM-26B with high-explosive fragmentation warhead) - range up to 8-16 km and Rb.28 Sidewinder (American AIM- 9) - launch range up to 18 km. Also, the aircraft could carry blocks of unguided aircraft missiles for attacking ground targets of 75-mm or 135-mm NAR caliber and a line of unguided aircraft bombs weighing up to 1000 pounds (454 kg).
Combat training version of the SAAB Sk 35C
Instead of an epilogue
The SAAB 35 Draken fighter in different versions was serially produced in Sweden from 1955 to 1974. During this period, 651 fighters of various modifications left the factory shops. After the completion of serial production, the aircraft was repeatedly modernized, which extended the operation of the aircraft until 2005. In addition to the Swedish Air Force, "Dragons" received the air forces of neighboring countries - Denmark and Finland, and SAAB 35 Draken fighters entered service with the Austrian Air Force. Another 6 machines were operated by the National Test Pilot School in the United States. For a small Scandinavian country, it was a success. The predecessor model Draken, the Saab 29 Tunnan, was exported to only one country.
It can be noted that the service of SAAB 35 Draken fighters passed without any vivid details. This is a classic hard worker plane. The fighter did not participate in hostilities, did not have an increased accident rate and did not kill pilots in plane crashes, the pilots did not set world records on the SAAB 35. Adopted by the Swedish Air Force in 1960, the aircraft was officially decommissioned only in 1999. The entire service of the Dragon is best characterized by one word - conscientious.
SAAB J35 Draken Austrian Air Force
Flight performance SAAB J35F Draken:
Overall dimensions: length - 15, 35 m, height - 3, 89 m, wingspan - 9, 42 m, wing area - 49, 22 m2.
Empty weight - 7425 kg.
Normal takeoff weight - 11,914 kg.
The maximum take-off weight is 16,000 kg.
Power plant - turbojet engine Volvo Flygmotor RM-6C (Avon Series 300), thrust - 56, 89 kN, afterburner - 78, 51 kN.
The maximum flight speed is 2125 km / h (at an altitude of 11,000 m).
Combat radius of action - 1930 km.
The practical flight range with PTB is 3250 km.
Service ceiling - 20,000 m.
Armament: 30-mm automatic cannon m / 55 (100 rounds).
Combat load - 2900 kg (9 hardpoints): air-to-air missile launchers, NAR, unguided bombs weighing up to 1000 pounds (454 kg).
Crew - 1 person.
Fighter SAAB J35J Draken, Photo: ru-aviation.livejournal.com
