Saab 29 Tunnan
Saab 29 Tunnan | |
---|---|
Role | Fighter |
National origin | Sweden |
Manufacturer | Saab AB |
First flight | 1 September 1948 |
Introduction | 1951 |
Retired | 1976 |
Primary users | Swedish Air Force Austrian Air Force |
Produced | 1948–1956 |
Number built | 661 |
The Saab 29 Tunnan (The
Work on what would become the Tunnan commenced in late 1945. The design, internally designated R 1001, had a barrel-like fuselage, giving it a destinctive rotund appearance, from which its name is derived. A relatively thin swept wing configuration was adopted after wartime aerodynamic research from Germany indicated its favourable high speed qualities. It was powered by the recently-developed de Havilland Ghost turbojet engine. The Swedish Air Force placed an initial order for three prototypes under the service designation J 29 during Autumn 1946. On 1 September 1948, the first prototype performed its maiden flight; flight testing proved the aircraft to exceed performance estimates in several aspects.
During May 1951,
Development
Sweden had fallen behind the rapid technical progress being made elsewhere, and
The R 1001 concept had a straight wing, but after the engineers obtained German swept wing research data, it was given a 25 degree sweep. Information on swept wings came through Switzerland and included drawings for the Messerschmitt P.1101, P.1110, P.1111 and P.1112. SAAB's project manager, Frid Wänström, collected these documents in 1945 from Messerschmitt engineers who escaped to Switzerland at the end of the War. Among them were engineer and aerodynamicist Hermann Behrbohm, who joined Saab's J 29 team. These documents clearly indicated delta and swept-wing designs "reduc[e] drag dramatically as the aircraft approached the sound barrier."[8]
To make the wing as thin as possible, the
The original powerplant was to have been the de Havilland Goblin turbojet, however, in December 1945, the more powerful de Havilland Ghost became available. This was ideal as not only was the Ghost set up for a circular air intake, its diameter would fit within the planned fuselage.[6] Following negotiations between de Havilland and Saab, the Ghost engine was selected to power the type.[10]
Despite early doubts for the supply of an equivalent to the American 75S aluminium alloy, Svenska Metallverken was able to manufacture it, although significantly larger sections were used than typical for aircraft construction.[14] The structure employed heavy frames and stressed skin to meet conflicting requirements on space, strength, rigidity and accessibility.[9]
The
The first flight by a Saab 29 prototype was on 1 September 1948, was made by
Four prototypes were built for the test program. The first two lacked armament, carrying heavy test equipment in their place instead. The third was armed with four 20 mm (0.79 in) cannons.[18] Air brakes on the fuselage and on the wings behind the rear spar and both conventional and combined aileron/flap arrangements were tested.[9] Flight tests revealed that the J 29 prototypes could exceed the maximum Mach number for which they had been designed and flight performance figures were typically in excess of predicted values.[18]
Quantity production commenced in 1948; during May 1951, Bråvalla Wing (F 13) received the first production aircraft.[3]
The Tunnan was produced in five main variants.
The J 29A fighter was the first model to enter service, and was followed by the J 29B and J 29E fighters, and finally the afterburner-equipped J 29F fighter, which was the final variant built. There was also a dedicated reconnaissance variant, the S 29C.[3][19] Between 1950 and 1956, 661 Tunnans were completed, the largest production run for any Saab aircraft.[7]
Design
The Saab 29 Tunnan was the first Swedish aircraft to be specifically designed to use jet propulsion. Sweden's first jet fighter, the
The Tunnan is powered with a single 22.4 kN (5,000 lbf) de Havilland Ghost turbojet[9] which have a top speed in excess of 1,050 km/h (650 mph), better performance than Sweden's de Havilland Vampires. The engine was bolted to the fuselage at three points and a special trolley was used to remove the engine for maintenance.[9] The final version had an afterburner, the first successful one used with a British jet engine.[20]
Improvements were made to the wing to incorporate a dog-tooth leading edge, raising the critical Mach number. From 1963 onwards, all frontline J 29Fs were equipped with AIM-9 Sidewinder infrared-seeking air-to-air missiles.[21]
Operational history
Sweden
The J 29 was fast and agile, and set the world speed record on a 500 km (310 mi) closed circuit in 1954[22] at 977 km/h (607.05 mph). Two S 29C (reconnaissance variant) additionally set an international speed record of 900.6 km/h (559.4 mph) over a 1,000 km (620 mi) closed-circuit course in 1955.[4][22]
The crash record in early service was poor, mainly due to the inexperience with swept-winged aircraft and the lack of a two-seat, dual control Tunnan trainer variant: this meant that Swedish fighter pilots could only be trained using two seat variants of the de Havilland Vampire (a straight-winged jet), before going solo in a Tunnan. 99 pilots were killed during military practice flights in Sweden.[7]
In May 1967, the fighter versions of the Tunnan was retired from combat service; however, a number of aircraft were retained and reconfigured for use as countermeasures trainers and for target towing duties into the 1970s.[3] In August 1976, the last official military flight was performed at the Swedish Air Force's 50th anniversary air show.[3]
Austria
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On 27 January 1961, the Swedish Government authorized the Air Board to sell 15 J 29F Tunnans to Saab for restoration and resale to the Austrian Air Force. Like the Swedish counterpart, the Saab 29 came to be colloquially called “flying barrel” (Fliegende Tonne) or just “barrel” (Tonne) in Austria.[23][24][25][26]
In 1962, the sale of a further 15 J 29F aircraft to Austria was authorized.
On 20 October 1964 at 9:48 a.m., two Austrian J 29Fs, of the second fighter bomber wing (2. Staffel/JaBo-Geschwader), took off from the base in Linz; the first, Bu. No. 29559 "E", was piloted by Sergeant Johan Kemetinger, the second, Bu. No. 29627 "L", was piloted by Staff Sergeant Alfred Erdler. In bad weather and a radio beacon mix-up, the pilots "smoked" and crossed the airspace of the then Czechoslovakia. Due to the bad weather, they could not even be intercepted by the emergency pair, who had to stay at the airport. The Austrian pilots thus got deep into the interior of the country and after finding that they had fuel for about the last 2 minutes of the flight, the pilots, believing that the field on which they landed was solid enough, landed in a field in the area of the village of Ořech in the Prague-West district. Coincidentally, just a few kilometres from the civilian Prague-Ruzyně airport.[30] One machine lost its landing gear on landing, the other overturned on a ditch, the pilot was trapped and had to be rescued by people working in the field. Both pilots were returned to their homeland after two days. The planes followed them later by rail.
UN operations in the Congo
The Tunnan was the first Swedish jet aircraft to see combat. In response to an appeal by the
Most missions involved attacking ground targets with cannons and unguided rockets but no aircraft were lost in action despite heavy
Swedish pilots refused some requests for close air support to ground troops, reasoning that the risk of civilian casualties was too high. In November 1962, the Swedish air commander refused a direct order to destroy the secessionist's Fouga Magisters since they were unarmed.[34]
The only aircraft lost was by a high-ranking officer who crashed during an aborted takeoff for a test flight. When
Variants
Saab R 1001
-
- J 29 – four prototypes built in 1948–50.[18]
Saab 29 A
-
- J 29A1 (J 29 A:1)[35] – fighter (jaktflygplan; “pursuit aircraft”), 32 built from 1950 to 1951; early series with wing-mounted dive brakes.[36][37]
- J 29A2 (J 29 A:2)[38] – fighter, 192 built from 1951 to 1954; later series with fuselage-mounted dive brakes ahead of the main landing gear doors.[39][36][37]
Saab 29 B
-
- J 29B – fighter, 332 built 1953–55; featured 50% larger fuel capacity and underwing hardpoints to carry bombs, rockets and drop-tanks.[40]
Saab 29 C
-
- S 29C (early) – reconnaissance (spaningsflygplan; “reconnaissance aircraft”), 76 built from 1954 through 1956; based on the Saab 29B, with five cameras mounted in a modified nose (no armament was carried);[20] painted with olive green wingtips and fin from 1954 onward.[42]
- S 29C (late) – S 29C modified with the improved wing design introduced on the Saab 29E, sometimes inofficially called S 29E.[20]
Saab 29 D
-
- J 29D – proposed fighter variant with afterburner; a single prototype was built to test the afterburning Ghost RM 2A turbojet with 27.5 kN (2,800 kgp/6,175 lbf) afterburning thrust. Prototype ultimately converted to J 29 F standard as the J 29F prototype.[20]
- J 29D (alt 1.) – proposal (alternative 1) fitted with a target acquisition radar in a nose radome either above the nose intake or placed inside it.[43]
- J 29D (alt 2.) – proposal (alternative 2)[43] fitted the type with 4 × 30 mm Hispano HSS 825 guns.[44] One J 29A (number 29137) trialed with 30 mm HSS 825 mockups in 1952.[45] After trestle mount trials of the 30 mm HSS 825 in 1954 it was found that the weapon was unsafe and the idea to use it on the J 29D was scrapped.[46]
- J 29D – proposed fighter variant with afterburner; a single prototype was built to test the afterburning Ghost RM 2A turbojet with 27.5 kN (2,800 kgp/6,175 lbf) afterburning thrust. Prototype ultimately converted to J 29 F standard as the J 29F prototype.[20]
Saab 29 E
-
- J 29E – fighter, 29 built in 1955; introduced an improved wing design with a leading edge dogtooth to increase the critical Mach number.[20]
Saab 29 F
-
- J 29F – fighter, 308 aircraft converted from available stocks of B and E model airframes from 1954 to 1956; featured the afterburning Ghost and dog-tooth wing; all remaining aircraft were further modified in 1963 to carry a pair of US-designed AIM-9B Sidewinder heat-seeking air-to-air missiles, in Swedish service designated as the rb 24.[21]
- J-29F „Tonne“ (Jagdversion) – fighter, 20 unmodified J 29F used by the Austrian Air Force.[23]
- J-29F „Tonne“ (Aufklärungsversion) – reconnaissance, 10 modified J 29F used by the Austrian Air Force, fitting a camera pack by Swedish Malmö Flygindustri (MFI) in place of the two left cannons, housing three 70 mm Vinten cameras in a green housing; 12 packs bought by the Austrian Air Force (installation was reversable), with 10 aircraft constantly modified. Only used by the second fighter bomber squadron (2. Staffel/JaBo-Geschwader).[47][23][48]
- J 29F – fighter, 308 aircraft converted from available stocks of B and E model airframes from 1954 to 1956; featured the afterburning Ghost and dog-tooth wing; all remaining aircraft were further modified in 1963 to carry a pair of US-designed
Operators
- Austrian Air Force
- 1. Staffel/JaBo-Geschwader (1. Sta/Jabogeschw; "Jagdbombergeschwader"): A-O yellow tailcodes; 15 J-29F fighter bombers[49][23][47][48]
- 2. Staffel/JaBo-Geschwader (2. Sta/Jabogeschw; "Jagdbombergeschwader"): A-O red tailcodes; 5 J-29F fighter bombers, 10 J-29F reconnaissance fighers[49][23][47][48]
- Swedish Air Force
- F 22 Congo (22 U.N. Fighter Squadron)[27]
Surviving aircraft
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- J 29F 29624 displayed at the Aeroseum in a cavern at Gothenburg/Säve airport.[50]
- J 29F 29640 preserved at Midlands Air Museum, Coventry, UK.[51]
- J 29F 29665 at the
- J 29F 29566 on display at the Museum of Military History in Vienna, Austria
- S29C 29902 preserved at F11 Museum at Stockholm Skavsta Airport, Nyköping, Sweden[53]
- J 29B 29657 in outdoor storage at Pima Air and Space Museum, Tucson, Arizona, US.
Specifications (Saab J 29F Tunnan)
Data from The Great Book of Fighters,[54] The Saab J 29[55] J 29F pilots manual[56]
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 10.23 m (33 ft 7 in)
- Wingspan: 11 m (36 ft 1 in)
- Height: 3.75 m (12 ft 4 in)
- Wing area: 24.15 m2 (259.9 sq ft)
- Empty weight: 4,845 kg (10,681 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 8,375 kg (18,464 lb)
- Powerplant: 1 × Svenska Flygmotor RM2B centrifugal-flow turbojet engine with afterburning, 27.0 kN (6,070 lbf) thrust
Performance
- Maximum speed: 1,060 km/h (660 mph, 570 kn)
- Range: 1,100 km (680 mi, 590 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 15,500 m (50,900 ft)
- Rate of climb: 32.1 m/s (6,320 ft/min)
Armament
- Guns:
- 4 x 20 mm (0.79 in) akan m/47C (license produced Hispano Mark V) autocannon with 180 rounds per gun
- Hardpoints:
- 8 inner hardpoints for rocket/missile pylons; inner hardpoint only capable of carrying one smaller rocket due to the landing gear[58]
- 2 outer hardpoints for drop tanks or incendiary bombs, however tests were conducted with carrying rockets on this hardpoint: 8 x 75 mm Bofors, 2-4 x 103 mm Bofors or 1 x 180 mm Bofors rocket could be carried per drop tank hardpoint via a dedicated pylon[58]
- Rockets:
- 75 mm (3.0 in) srak m/55 ( up to a total of 24
- 80 mm (3.1 in) prak m/46C (armour-piercing warhead; 1 rocket per pylon up to a total of 8
- 145 mm (5.7 in) psrak m/49 (Bofors 103 mm (4.1 in) rocket)air-to-ground rocket with 145 mm (5.7 in) shaped charge warhead; 1-2 rockets per pylon up to a total of 14
- 150 mm (5.9 in) srak m/51 (Bofors 103 mm (4.1 in) rocket)high-explosive warhead; 1-2 rockets per pylon up to a total of 14
- 180 mm (7.1 in) hprak m/49 (Bofors 180 mm (7.1 in) rocket)semi armor-piercing, high-explosivewarhead; 1 rocket per pylon up to a total of 4
- Missiles:
- Rb 24 (AIM-9B Sidewinder) air-to-air missile; carried on the third hardpoint from the center
- Rb 24 (
- Bombs:
See also
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
- Dassault Ouragan
- Dassault Mystère
- Hawker Hunter
- Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15
- Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-9
- Lavochkin La-15
- North American F-86 Sabre
- FMA IAe 33 Pulqui II
- Republic F-84F Thunderstreak
- Focke-Wulf Ta 183
Related lists
References
Notes
- Saab Safirare in indefinite form.
Citations
- ^ Nilsson 2012.
- ^ Project:s Saab Historic Milestones, Saab, 23 March 2014, Swedish naming of aircraft
- ^ a b c d e f Boyne 2002, p. 547.
- ^ a b "1940s." Saab, Retrieved: 27 March 2016.
- ^ Widfeldt 1966, p. 3.
- ^ a b Flight 1950, p. 556.
- ^ a b c d e Goebel, Greg. "The SAAB 29 Tunnan." Vector site, 1 July 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
- ^ a b Erichs et al. 1988, p. 37.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Flight 1950, p. 558.
- ^ a b Widfeldt 1966, p. 4.
- ^ a b Flight 1950, p. 557.
- ^ a b Flight 1950, pp. 556–557.
- ^ Widfeldt 1966, pp. 4–5.
- ^ Flight 1950, pp. 557-558.
- ^ a b c d Widfeldt 1966, p. 5.
- ^ "Flygande Tunnan fyller 70 – Flygvapenbloggen". blogg.forsvarsmakten.se. Retrieved 2020-09-17.
- ^ "History: Saab 29 Tunnan: JAS 29 in the Swedish Air Force." Saab. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
- ^ a b c Widfeldt 1966, p. 6.
- ^ Widfeldt 1966, pp. 6–12.
- ^ a b c d e Widfeldt 1966, p. 8.
- ^ a b Widfeldt 1966, pp. 8–9.
- ^ a b "General Aviation World Records: Saab J 29." Archived 2007-11-13 at the Wayback Machine Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). Retrieved: 18 February 2009.
- ^ a b c d e "Saab J-29F „Tunnan" "Fliegende Tonne"". gotech.at. Archived from the original on 2010-06-26. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ "S-65OE mit einer „Tonne"". airpower.at. Archived from the original on 2006-05-14.
- ^ "J29 i Österrike". ointres.se. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ "F18-Kamraten-nr-58-minsta-filstorlek.pdf" (PDF). f18.se. p. 25. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Widfeldt 1966, p. 10.
- ^ Widfeldt 1966, pp. 10-11.
- ^ Lombardi 2007, p. 165.
- ^ "Saab J-29F "Tunnan" von www.gotech.at".
- ^ a b Widfeldt 1966, p. 9.
- ^ "J 29 – SAAB 29 ”Flygande tunnan” (1951–1976)." Avrosys. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
- ^ "J 29 Tunnan." Everything2. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
- ^ "The UN's First "Air Force": Peacekeepers in Combat, Congo 1960–64". walterdorn.net. Retrieved 2022-07-10.
- ^ "Inglasat foto på flygande J 29 A:1, SAAB "Tunnan"". digitaltmuseum.se. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ ISBN 9185496790.
- ^ a b SFI 29 A och B : speciell förarinstruktion : fastställes den 22/12 1954. Stockholm: Kungliga flygförvaltningen (Royal Swedish Air Force Materiel Administration). 1954-12-22. p. 22.
- ^ "Inglasat fotografi på J 29A:2". digitaltmuseum.se. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ Widfeldt 1966, pp. 6–7.
- ^ a b Widfeldt 1966, p. 7.
- ^ a b c "0602 Flygförvaltningen, A Flygförvaltningen 1922 – 1971, Materielavdelningen 1942 – 1954, F 2 Ärenden kring beredskapsläget, Volym 6" [0602 Air Force Materiel Administration, A Air Force Materiel Administration 1922 – 1971, Materiel department 1942 – 1954, F 2 Matters regarding the state of preparedness, Volume 6] (Document) (in Swedish). Sweden: Flygförvaltningens arkiv via Krigsarkivet (the Royal Swedish Air Force Materiel Administration archive, via the Swedish Military Archive). 1957. SE/KrA/0602/A/003:H/F 2/6.sok
.riksarkivet .se /arkiv /hnj2OZG3pKEMpj3UrtUyF2 - ^ ISBN 9172430036.
- ^ ISBN 9788365281340.
- ^ Swedish archive document collection: FF materialavdelningen, serie E I, volym 9
- ^ "29137 J 29A". Retrieved 2021-06-13.
- ^ Thorsson, Nils (1975). Historik och kartläggning av vapenmateriel för flygplan. Arboga, Sweden. p. 21.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ a b c SAAB 29 80 år. Stockholm, Sweden: Svensk flyghistorisk förening. 2018. pp. 22–25.
- ^ a b c "Saab J-29F „Tunnan"". airpower.at. Archived from the original on 2006-05-14.
- ^ a b "TIGERSTAFFEL". luftstreitkraefte.at. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ "FLYGETS UPPLEVELSECENTER – I UNDERJORDEN".
- ^ https://www.midlandairmuseum.co.uk/aircraftlist.php "Midland Air Museum". Retrieved: 18 December 2023
- ^ "Saab J 29F Tunnan." Musée de l'Air. Retrieved: 21 March 2015.
- ^ "Spaningsflygplan, S 29C" "Digitalt Museum". Retrieved: 23 November 2023.
- ^ Green and Swanborough, 2001 [page needed]
- ^ Widfeldt 1966, p. 12.
- ^ SFI J 29 F, speciell förarinstruktion.
- ^ Berns, Lennart. Flygande Tunnan, En antologi av Lennart Berns. Sweden. p. 144.
- ^ a b c d e f g Sjögren, Sven. FV Raketbeväpning 1944-1954, Raketbeväpning i svenska flygvapnet : en sammanställning över Försökscentralens (Provningsavdelningens) medverkan vid utveckling och utprovning av raketbeväpning åren 1944-1954.
- ^ a b Beskrivning över Flygvapnets raketmateriel. 1957.
Bibliography
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- Erichs, Rolph et al. The Saab-Scania Story. Stockholm: Streiffert & Co., 1988. ISBN 91-7886-014-8.
- Green, William and Gordon Swanborough. The Great Book of Fighters. St. Paul, ISBN 0-7603-1194-3.
- Hellström, Leif (2015). "To Africa in a Barrel". The Aviation Historian (13): 22–34. ISSN 2051-1930.
- Lombardi, Fiona. The Swiss Air Power: Wherefrom? Whereto? vdf Hochschulverlag AG, 2007. ISBN 3-7281-3099-0.
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