Saab Viggen Multirole Combat Aircraft | An Aircraft That Could Radarlock The SR-71 Blackbird
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Published 2023-06-25
The Saab 37 Viggen (Swedish for "the Bolt" or "the Tufted Duck" is a retired Swedish single-seat, single-engine, short-medium range multirole combat aircraft. Development work on the type was initiated at Saab in 1952 and, following the selection of a radical delta wing configuration, the resulting aircraft performed its first flight on 8 February 1967 and entered service on 21 June 1971. It was the first canard design produced in quantity and arguably the most modern/advanced combat aircraft in Europe at the time of introduction, featuring an airborne digital central computer with integrated circuits for its avionics, the world's first of its kind, automating and taking over tasks previously requiring a navigator/copilot, facilitating handling in tactical situations where, among other things, high speeds and short decision times determined whether attacks would be successful or not, a system not surpassed until the introduction of the Panavia Tornado into operational service in 1981.
Several distinct variants of the Viggen were produced to perform the roles of fighter bomber/strike fighter (AJ 37), aerial reconnaissance (SF 37), maritime patrol/anti-surface (SH 37), and a two-seat trainer (Sk 37). In the late 1970s, the all-weather interceptor/strike fighter JA 37 variant was introduced. In November 2005, the Viggen was retired from service by the Swedish Air Force, the only operator, having been replaced by the newer Saab JAS 39 Gripen.
The Viggen was designed to be simple to maintain, even by conscripted flight line mechanics with limited technical training.] A single Viggen could be maintained by a team of five conscripts under the supervision of a single chief mechanic. Standard turnaround, including refueling and rearming, took less than ten minutes to perform; while an engine replacement took four hours. Over the long term, the Viggen required 22-man hours per flight hour of maintenance work at the depot level and nine-man hours per flight hour at the front line.
By the mid-1980s, Swedish Viggen fighter pilots, using the predictable patterns of Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird routine flights over the Baltic Sea, had managed to achieve radar lock-on with radar on the SR-71 on numerous occasions. Despite heavy jamming from the SR-71, target illumination was maintained by feeding the target location from ground-based radars to the fire-control computer in the Viggen. The most common site for the lock-on to occur was the thin stretch of international airspace between Öland and Gotland that the SR-71 used on the return flight. The Viggen is the only aircraft to get an acknowledged radar lock on the SR-71.
By 1994, the replacement of the Viggen by the later and more advanced Saab JAS 39 Gripen was in progress, the type being progressively phased out as greater numbers of Gripen aircraft were delivered. On 25 November 2005, the last front-line Viggen was formally retired by the Swedish Air Force. A few aircraft were kept in an operational condition for electronic warfare training against the Gripen at F 17M in Linköping; the last of these Viggen flights took place in June 2007.
General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 16.4 m (53 ft 10 in)
Wingspan: 10.6 m (34 ft 9 in)
Height: 5.9 m (19 ft 4 in)
Wing area: 46 m2 (500 sq ft)
Empty weight: 9,500 kg (20,944 lb)
Gross weight: 16,439 kg (36,242 lb) (AJ37 17,000 kg (37,479 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 19,274 kg (42,492 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Volvo RM8B afterburning turbofan, 72.1 kN (16,200 lbf) thrust dry, 125 kN (28,000 lbf) with afterburner
Performance
Maximum speed: 2,231 km/h (1,386 mph, 1,205 kn) at 36,100 ft (11,003 m)
Maximum speed: Mach 2.1
Ferry range: 1,820 km (1,130 mi, 980 nmi) internal fuel only
Service ceiling: 18,000 m (59,000 ft)
Rate of climb: 203 m/s (40,000 ft/min)
Armament
Guns: 1 × 30 mm Oerlikon KCA cannon with 125 rounds
Hardpoints: 9 (three hardpoints under the fuselage and three under each wing) with a capacity of 7,000 kg (15,000 lb), with provisions to carry combinations of:
Missiles:
4 x RB99 AMRAAM (JA 37D),
2 x RB71 Skyflash (only JA37),
6 x AIM-9 Sidewinder
4 rocket pods (135 mm, 5.4 in).
U95 ECM pod (JA 37D)
2 x RB 04
2 x RBS 15
2 x Rb 05
#viggen #sr71 #aircraft
All Comments (21)
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Awesome video. I lived my first 5 years on a farm in southern Sweden just a kilometer or two from a training field used by the airforce where they had a landing strip that was a piece of normal road, very short, that they used to not have to cut off road traffic every time they trained (which they did often as well during the 70s and early 80s). When out driving sometimes the military stopped traffic and fighter jets landed on the road in front of you and disappeared into the forest on small taxi ways. Then traffic was on again. My first memory of Viggen is becoming shell shocked on our lawn when out playing and 2 came full throttle over our farm from take off, not 200m up. My parents said it took them an hour to get me to respond to anything after that, I just stood trampling in a spot eyes closed and jaw clenched... for an hour after! My parents contacted the airforce and after that we got phone calls ahead of something similar happening, sometimes days ahead. Sometimes like half an hour and we all had earprotection we put on then and went out on the lawn to watch the planes, sometimes passing low enough for rivets to be visible to the naked eye. You could still feel your body getting almost punched by the sound like that but it was a fun thing when expecting it. When not... ----> Shell shock. I can't see any other result even possible. :D My dad was a hobby pilot so planes was always a big thing in our family and I never became afraid of planes or anything but I do remember that moment when reality itself was torn to shreds by two shadows passing over me - in the blink of an eye. And later, even as an adult having many other planes to compare to I can say without any hesitation: Viggen was loud as f*ck!
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I've thought that Viggens and Gripens are nearly as close to works of art as military planes can be.
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This is one of the planes that first got me interested in aviation. I still think it is one of the best looking jets ever.
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Sweden had less than 8 million population in 1967 when Viggen first flew, today in the Gripen era it's 10.5 million. The aircraft they make are emblems of an extraordinarily productive people capable of coming up with world class engineering on a consistent basis. With the possible exception of the Israelis, no other small country comes anywhere near close.
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The Viggen didn't just radar lock the SR71, lots of planes did that, it got into a successful launch envelope (as assessed by the USAF).
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This spends a lot more time on the history of Swedish military aircraft. Pretty good documentary really.
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Always admired that the Viggen had to be reinforced because it was just too powerful for its own design.
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The mighty Thunder-Duck! I've always loved the look of the Viggen. I made an Airfix model of one as a kid.
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Those Swedes are a clever bunch. SAAB, VOLVO and ABBA. Say no more... Greetings from Denmark.
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Viggen is a beautiful plane! Everything that looks good also flies good. Thanks a lot for a great job making excellent content!
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Worked with a mechanical engineer for a while that worked on several swedish jet fighters and he described that the Viggen was dedigned for "tryckllandning", loosely translated as "slam landing". This meant that the jet, unlike regular aircrafts, did not flare during landings but was "flown into the ground". This is what enabled it's exceptional short take off and landing.
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That front flip with the skis at 23:27 was most impressive!
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I worked at SAAB but it was when JAS Gripen was new :) My neighbour worked at the civil side .There is a fly museum outside Linköping where you can see the older planes and we also have a few of these jets as "statues" along the motorway :)
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I mean, I love American planes with all my heart and soul but Viggen , is/was something out of this world, and so is the Gripen.
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15:17 these maintance facts are yet to be "broken" change of engine and how little was needed to refule and send it on a new misson is still meega impressive for me.
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My earliest memory is with these. I was very little, playing on the front porch when a squadron of Viggens flew over the house, probably in afterburn. The noise they made, made me scared of playing outside alone for more than a year. This was in the mid 80s. Truly awesome machines. Also not mentioned in the film; both the Lansen and the Viggen were designed to carry nuclear weapons. Swedens nuclear weapons program officially ended in 1968 but some development continued into the early 70s.
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I still remember the day (sometime in 1990-ish) when i was a boy. Where i lived there was a bunch of apartment complexes. This particular day, a hot day... 3 Viggen in a formation flew over at a very low altitude. The engine roar was so loud i held my ears and got so scared. I still have no idea why they flew so low at that speed... but oh my god it was loud. Both me and my brother ran home and told our parents. I believe they flew below 300 meters.
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I worked with the AJ37 as an conscript. Very easy to work with. ❤❤❤❤
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Just watched this for the second time. Great stuff, truly awesome achievements for such a small and independent nation. The only gripe that I have is that the J 21 was sadly left out. An interesting type as it is one of only two aircraft I can think of, that have had two lives. One as a piston engined fighter, and the other as a jet fighter! The other type is the Yakovlev Yak 3 with its V 12 powerplant which became the Yak 15 powered by a Soviet built Jumo 004. And the SAAB J 21 went from a pusher configuration DB 605 inverted V 12 to a DH Goblin turbojet. Great video as always. Thanks.
