counts for the Mirage F1s and Cheetahs
— F-5s and MiG-21s don’t it these
requirements.’ But just because Draken’s
MiGs are in storage doesn’t mean they are
defunct. Adds Kerby, ‘We are in a constant
roll of bidding because that’s what
contractors do. Maybe we can use the
MiGs in the future if the business case is
there’. While the MiG-21 isn’t known for its
maneuverability, radar capability orendurance, it is still a low-cost supersonic
ighter, which could ofer a suitable
platform for high-saturation scenarios. If
demand exists, Draken says it would be
able to provide the resource.
Looking at other potential platforms,
Kerby says, ‘There are very old F-16s on the
market now but we don’t see them as an
ideal platform for Draken. If a country
elects to discontinue operating their F-16sit is most likely because they have become
too expensive to operate or they are at the
end of their serviceable life. Our existence
is based on cost savings. With our current
aircraft we can operate for a ifth of the
cost of an F-16. Operating F-16s would
evaporate that beneit.’
Sean Gustafson adds, ‘In the end, Draken
ofered the best value to the USAF by
ofering a large leet of both subsonic and
supersonic, radar-equipped ighters.
Draken’s ability to meet both capacity and
capability immediately upon contract
award gave the USAF the conidence there
would be zero gap in training for the
Weapons School and ‘Red Flag’.’Strong ambition
As ifth-generation ighters demand more
taxing live lying scenarios, coupled with
how same-type, in-house, missions are
increasingly seen as ‘negative training’, and
as ‘legacy’ ighter leets become
exhausted, demand for contracted
aggressors looks set to grow. Since its
inception in 2011, Draken has grown to
support a wide cross-section of the US
military. In 2017, the Royal Netherlands AirAbove: In 2015,
Draken supported
Dutch F-35A test
work at Edwards
AFB.
Frank Crébas/
Bluelife Aviation
Above left:
Draken’s pilot
roster includes
some impressive
experience, with
plenty of TOPGUN
and Weapons
School patch-
wearers.
Frank Crébas/
Bluelife AviationINDUSTRY REPORT // ADVERSARY AIR SUPPORT
36 November 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net