How many Saab 35 Drakens were built?

Short answer

Saab built a total of 651 Drakens. Production was spread across series such as the 90 aircraft delivered between March 1960 and December 1961 and the 120 delivered between May 1963 and April 1965. The fighter was withdrawn from Swedish service in December 1999.

Published: November 1, 2026 · Updated: November 1, 2026 · Edited by Above Ten Thousand · Editorial policy

SAAB J-35OE Draken at the Museum of Aviation in Košice 07ZemplinTemplar (CC BY SA), vía commons

A production run of 651 aircraft

Saab built a total of 651 Drakens. Deliveries were organized into series with their own serial-number blocks: 90 aircraft, from 35001 to 35090 and including test aircraft, were delivered between March 1960 and December 1961. That block was followed by 73 units, from 35201 to 35273, also with test aircraft among them, built and delivered between February 1962 and March 1963.

The 1960s batches

Another series comprised 120 aircraft, numbered from 35274 to 35393, delivered between May 1963 and April 1965. Between 1963 and 1968, another 60 aircraft were built, from 35901 to 35960, including test aircraft.

Export and retirement

In May 1985, the Austrian Air Force bought 24 J 35D aircraft. By the mid-1980s, the Swedish air force's Drakens had largely been replaced by the more advanced JA 37 Viggen fighter. The Draken was withdrawn from Swedish service in December 1999.