View allAll Photos Tagged fallback
Available price - $458.00
DRESS 29892 BY LARA DESIGN
Details:
Plunging v-neck mermaid gown with beaded floral and fringe details featuring a flowing train
Material:
Tulle
Model Info:
Height:
5'10
Size:
4
Fit:
Body Conscious
Neckline:
V-Neck
Available in Sizes
0 to 16
Available in
Navy
Blush/Silver
Nude/Turquoise
White
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A fallback single transmit Tx coil option was left on the high acuity headset to offer a simple wireless power transfer where the coil is optimally placed directly in front of the eye. A Direct-Digital-Synthesizer running at 50MHz allows full control of Magnitude, Frequency and Phase with the added advantage of providing hard wired high speed modulation control. The DDS allows precision resonance tracking at resolutions below 1Hz allowing mutual inductance and eye movement compensation between the external and implant inductive coils similar to a DPLL. the output frequency is set to track the resonance of the series-parallel tank circuits notionally set at 6.8MHz. Small changes in mutual inductance resulting from eye movements can be easily tracked using VI phase shifts.
NEW! Super unique, gorgeous nipple chains that connect to a chain necklace. Featuring a gem at the centre of the chest with several PBR and Fallback textures! Get it Inworld maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Ruined%20Mine/145/182/822 or on the MP here: marketplace.secondlife.com/p/Tealeaf-Treasures-Necklace-N...
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My brother's wedding party in August 2011 was the first live test of my new DJ rig, which proved quite practical.
The two iPads give me two decks each with effects, cue points, tempo and other "wax controls", and the analog mixer (which has been with me since the SL1210 days) gives me headphone cue and master outs.
And the iPhone on the right was my «Spotify fallback plan», if I just had to play something that wasn't in the iPads' music storage.
The Postcard
An early high-definition shot of Antwerp in Belgium on a postally unused postcard by Er. Thill de Bruxelles.
The horse at the bottom of the photograph looks as if it's got its work cut out, hauling that large wagon on its own.
Antwerp
Antwerp (French: Anvers) is a city in Belgium, and is the capital of Antwerp province in Flanders. It has a population of over 520,000, and Its metropolitan area houses around 1,200,000 people, coming in second behind Brussels.
Antwerp is on the River Scheldt, linked to the North Sea by the Westerschelde estuary. It is about 40 kilometres (25 mi) north of Brussels, and about 15 kilometres (9 mi) from the Dutch border.
The Port of Antwerp is one of the biggest in the world, ranking second in Europe, and within the top 20 globally.
Antwerp was also the location of the world's oldest stock exchange building, originally built in 1531 and re-built in 1872. it has been derelict since 1997.
Antwerp has long been an important city in the Low Countries, both economically and culturally, especially before the Spanish Fury (1576) in the Dutch Revolt.
The inhabitants of Antwerp are nicknamed Sinjoren, after the Spanish honorific señor and French seigneur, "lord", referring to the Spanish noblemen who ruled the city in the 17th century.
Today Antwerp is a major trade and cultural centre, and is the world's second most multi-cultural city (after Amsterdam), home to 170 nationalities.
It is also known as 'The diamond capital of the world' because of its large diamond district.
Le Steen
Le Steen (literally 'The Stone') is all that remains of the inner ring of fortifications that once protected the town.
Antwerp in the Great War
During the Great War, the city became the fallback point of the Belgian Army after the defeat at Liège. It was taken after heavy fighting with the German Army, and the Belgians were forced to retreat westward.
Antwerp in World War II
In WW2, the city was an important strategic target because of its port. It was occupied by Germany in May 1940, and liberated by the British in September 1944.
After this, the Germans tried to destroy the port which the Allies were using to bring material ashore. Thousands of V-1 and V-2 missiles battered the city. In fact it was hit by more V-2's than all other targets during the entire war combined.
The city was rebuilt after the war in a modern style.
Abba Eban
"History teaches us that men and
nations behave wisely when they
have exhausted all other alternatives".
This was said during a speech in London UK on 16th. December 1970 by Abba Eban (1915-2002), an Israeli diplomat and writer.
Image of the bottom of the HS02 headset showing a High-Q Tx Coil interface. Three (3) coil drivers were removed from HS01 requirements and subsequently replaced with a (fallback) single Tx transmit coil driver on HS02 to make room for a galvanically isolated percutaneous plug interface. The loan planar Tx coil is driven via a 50MHz DDS that includes programmable quadrature phase and dual frequency high-speed modulation control lines via feed directly from the Virtex6 FPGA. Also included in this power transfer block are voltage and current monitoring circuits including logarithmic impedance and phase converter IC providing precision monitoring of transformer load characteristics
I'm glad to have the mug thing as a fallback, because I'm not in the freaking mood today.
So this whole starting the new site on Monday thing is kind of grating me down already. I had to work this morning. I have to work tomorrow night til 3am, and then be at the new place at 8am?! Fuck. Even moreso, because it's going to take 2 buses to get down there. It's closer to my house than the old place, but there isn't a straight bus there. Bullshit. I told Justin I was taking the car.
I had to tell my favorite armored truck guy today that it was probably the last time he'd see me. He gave me a hug and congratulated me. I told one of my favorite cashiers too, and he said I'd ruined his whole day.
After work, Justin picked me up and we went out to the mall to look for a good first day shirt. I bought two shirts, but I tried on a whole lot more. I hate clothes shopping. Boo. I also tried to find some cute flats, but they were too damn expensive. I'm curious to know how much running around I'm going to be doing. I suppose I could wear my heels, but not if I'm going to be running around all day.
That's probably the worst thing about this new position. I pretty much don't know anything about what I'm going to be doing. It's frustrating.
Anyway, we had LJS for dinner, and then got some Samoas ice cream. Two bites in, the temporary crown I got yesterday fell out. I wasn't even chewing, I was just pushing the ice cream around in my mouth. Justin claims we can get "crown glue" tomorrow. Right now I just have it shoved in the spot, I hope it doesn't fall out in the middle of the night and choke me to death or something.
A standing-room-only crowd recently attended a Writers Read event, celebrating the College’s 50-year anniversary with featured authors, activists and former COD students Eboo Patel and Leigh Stein reading and discussing their work.
(Press Photography Network/ Special to College of DuPage)
Taken on the journey down, this was to be the fallback bridge if the Millau Viaduct failed to impress. When constructed, this was the highest bridge in the world.
Previous to the summer of 2012, NAIT's video streaming service required the Flash Player for playback on the user's computer. With the rapid rise and dominance of iOS mobile devices (iPhone and iPad) it became apparent that we needed to provide support for those devices that were not capable of using the Flash Player. NAIT uses Adobe Media Server to stream video via the web. With a bunch of research and even face to face discussions with Engineers on the Adobe Media Server team (while attending Adobe Max conference in Los Angelese, Oct 2011) I determined that upgrading our services and solving the issue would be relatively pain free if careful steps were taken.
Firstly, I pushed ISD to upgrade to the latest Adobe Media Server software. While they were working through that I downloaded and deployed a development version of the AMS sotfware so I could experiment with the embed code that delivers the video via a web page. I was able to get it to work so that the Flash based video would play by default; if Flash was not supported, the fallback for iOS-supported HTML5 video was employed. ISD performed the upgrade and architected the system so that the same video assets were accessed for either Flash or HTML5 video playback. Once the new web embed code was in place on the production web page we achieved success with no change in workflow required for producing video and placing it on the VOD-MEDIA drive, aside from the fact that we must now encode our video as h.264.
The Library also uses video streaming but in a slightly different manner; they deploy video with a seprate, secured web page. Using what was learned from the work described above, I easily and seamlessly updated their service with no additional work required on their end.
The NAIT Web Team also benefitted from the Adobe Media Server upgrade and were able to implement their own HTML5 video strategies.
Recognition: "Congratulations Randall Troppmann, you have been recognized by Wayne Hofman with a Who’s Great at NAIT! eCard. The sender wanted you to know: Thanks for all the help in getting the NAIT video player working to support ipad playback for the large number of Library videos currently in use. Appreciate the expertise and help in this excellent NAIT resource that you have developed!"
I took this picture on a hillside overlooking Krewinkel. I thought it was interesting because it gives you perspective on two towns that were hit early on in the December 16th outbreak of the German offensive, known as Watch on Rhine
The 14th Cavalry had a platoon in Krewinkel that received the brunt of the first wave of Volkgrenadier attacks.
Manderfeld was their fallback line and you can see it in the distance about 1-2 miles.
American troops held in Krewinkel and Afst for much of the morning. Despite the attacks starting at 0530, the withdrawals from here started between 11 and 12. They then pulled back towards Manderfeld where the attacks by Germans really intensified.
I guess what struck me is the following. First, these towns are pretty close. I don't know why but I thought that they were farther apart. Second, that the Americans didn't just break and run. They had an orderly fight and pulled back to a defensive position. Also, the Germans didn't just bust through here. To be held up 6-7 hours given the element of surprise, the intense artillery attack and given the light defense somehow gave me a better impression of the Americans than I had originally
I'm planning to take Bitsy to the Silverleaf Renfest this weekend as a captured fae so I needed wings asap. This is the quick & easy version: feather butterfly wings with added Stickles and glitter. I'll be experimenting with some other types of wings but these are the fallbacks incase the others don't turn out.
PS- Bitsy says faeries like to be nakey. :)
As part of the project, all of the library account functionality that was previously only available in the OPAC has been implemented in a new "MyLibrary" site. The site uses the responsive Twitter Bootstrap framework with the Spacelab theme. Most interactions occur using Ajax (with a suitable fallback for non-JS browsers).
Jessica in the Boling Alley (testing the Chinese lights)
Styling/makeup: Vivian Tran
Model: Jessica Anne
Focus Light: Geoff_F
Beauty DIsh: Todd.
Strobist: this is a single 580ex home made beauty dish/salad bowl gadget off to the left. We were there to test the Boling lights (dodgy triggering) but the fallback arrangement was the home made beauty dish.
This is an alley off Adelaide Street, Brisbane CBD.
On a warm afternoon in the heart of Brooklyn, distress calls flood the airwaves of a madman in full body armor terrorizing the streets. As NYPD clears the area of civilians, strategically placed bombs bring local government buildings crumbling to the ground. The NYPD special task force has arrived on the scene to find the assailant has placed a bio-weapon in one of the devastated buildings. Realizing the situation is beyond their ability – the commander decides to fallback and contacts the Commissioner…
…after receiving the SITREP by Task Force Commander Higgins; and appropriately grilling his team for their incompetence, the Commissioner calls in a personal favor to one of his poker buddies — a 3-Star general over at the Pentagon.
In less than an hour, COBALT Team arrives on the scene with their orders in-hand:DISARM AND DETAIN.
The following narration is a first-person perspective of that mission...cont' at bit.ly/1iwBymq
On a warm afternoon in the heart of Brooklyn, distress calls flood the airwaves of a madman in full body armor terrorizing the streets. As NYPD clears the area of civilians, strategically placed bombs bring local government buildings crumbling to the ground. The NYPD special task force has arrived on the scene to find the assailant has placed a bio-weapon in one of the devastated buildings. Realizing the situation is beyond their ability – the commander decides to fallback and contacts the Commissioner…
…after receiving the SITREP by Task Force Commander Higgins; and appropriately grilling his team for their incompetence, the Commissioner calls in a personal favor to one of his poker buddies — a 3-Star general over at the Pentagon.
In less than an hour, COBALT Team arrives on the scene with their orders in-hand:DISARM AND DETAIN.
The following narration is a first-person perspective of that mission...cont' at bit.ly/1iwBymq
A standing-room-only crowd recently attended a Writers Read event, celebrating the College’s 50-year anniversary with featured authors, activists and former COD students Eboo Patel and Leigh Stein reading and discussing their work.
(Press Photography Network/ Special to College of DuPage)
Thousands of antifascists, trade unionists and members of the local community marched in victory through Whitechapel today after the English Defence League failed in its bid to demonstrate in Tower Hamlets.
Only around 600 members of EDL made it to their final rally point – at Aldgate, outside the Tower Hamlets borough boundary in East London.
The racists and fascists of the EDL had bragged that they were coming to the heart of Tower Hamlets – “marching into the lion’s den” in the multiracial, multicultural borough. Despite a national mobilisation, they failed utterly.
Electric
Instead the day belonged to antifascists and antiracists, with an electric atmosphere of solidarity as white, black and Asian people, of all religions and none, came together.
Throughout the day, the antiracists gathered, with speeches, trade union banners, flags and music at the UAF/United East End protest close to East London Mosque, with anti-EDL protesters and local people also gathered directly outside the mosque and occupying key road junctions and streets to make sure EDL supporters could not enter the borough.
The groups converged at the junction of Whitechapel Road and Commercial Street in the afternoon and cheered the news that EDL leader “Tommy Robinson” had been arrested, along with 72 other EDL members before the racists and fascists were escorted away by police.
Railworkers
The first blow against the EDL was struck early by the RMT railworkers’ union, which prevented the organisation’s planned “muster” at Liverpool Street station, by threatening to close the station down if the violent racists were allowed to gather there.
They had already been refused any venue in Tower Hamlets, including Sainsbury’s car park.
The EDL were instead forced to gather at Kings Cross – after their fallback plan to meet at pubs in Euston was scuppered when the pubs declared they would not host the racists either. Their journey south was then held up when RMT members closed the tube station.
The EDL were eventually escorted by police to Aldgate. A group of EDL members, who went direct to a pub in Liverpool Street, showed the organisation’s violent character, throwing flash bombs, attempting to attack passers by and setting fire to a journalist who was reporting events.
Chanting
But the EDL were unable to enter Tower Hamlets, instead moving through the City of London to their rally point.
Tommy Robinson – who arrived at the EDL event disgracefully dressed up as a rabbi – was arrested there, sparking more scuffles between the EDL and police.
When the EDL had left the area, the antiracist protestors marched in their thousands back down Whitechapel Road, chanting “Whose streets? Our streets!” and “Black and white unite and fight, smash the EDL”.
As the march passed the East London Mosque, demostrators broke into spontaneous applause.
The mosque is the symbol of the area’s Muslim community – the particular target of the EDL’s anti-Muslim racism.
Afterwards, UAF national officer Martin Smith said:
Today we have won. We haven’t had anybody arrested. We have stopped the EDL coming into this borough. Tommy Robisnon has been arrested. We have marched on the streets today, the EDL have gone and we have won.
Speakers
The UAF/United East End demo had earlier heard from speakers including CWU deputy general secretary Tony Kearns, East London Mosque’s Dilowar Khan, former MEP Glyn Ford, veteran local antifascist Phil Maxwell, Terry Stewart of LGBT group Out East, former council leader Phil Maxwell and a range of other local trade union and community representatives.
Former mayor of London Ken Livingstone sent a message of support, saying: “This is a fitting response to those who peddle hatred and fear.”
Musicians and DJs added to the wonderful atmosphere of unity and solidarity, with trade union banners from all over the country lining the street.
Brilliant
The UAF/United East End mobilisation was called because it was clear that the EDL still intended to come to Tower Hamlets for a static demonstration, despite the home office ban on marching.
The aim was to show the greatest possible opposition to the racists and fascists and ensure they could not threaten the borough’s multiracial, multicultural community.
Today’s brilliant day of antiracist, antifascist solidarity showed why that was right.
For more information and further stories check out www.uaf.org.uk and www.socialistworker.co.uk
#ds261
How does your garden grow? Make a photo of something growing in your or someone else's garden today.
This gives a very wrong impression of the garden.
There are tons of things growing and I took tons of pictures of them got lost and decided to do a fallback to something simple: Some bamboo leaves. I love bamboo. Beatuful and dead usefull too.
A standing-room-only crowd recently attended a Writers Read event, celebrating the College’s 50-year anniversary with featured authors, activists and former COD students Eboo Patel and Leigh Stein reading and discussing their work.
(Press Photography Network/ Special to College of DuPage)
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The SAAB B31 was a Swedish jet-powered multirole aircraft, originally designed to serve as a tactical bomber, ground attack, reconnaissance and interceptor aircraft. In the aftermath of the Second World War, Sweden set about the rebuilding and modernization of its armed forces. Regarding aviation, jet propulsion had been identified as the powerplant of the future, and experience with the SAAB 21R, which had been converted from a propeller-pusher aircraft into a jet-powered fighter and attack aircraft in 1947, bolstered confidence in the home industry’s competence. The Saab 21R was only an interim solution, though. One hundred and twenty-four aircraft were planned but this number was reduced to only 64 and they were mainly used as fighter-bombers. The Flygvapnet’s standard post-war bomber, the Saab 18, a twin piston-engine design from 1944, was outdated, too, and its performance was regarded as inadequate for the Fifties. This led to a major development initiative for modern jet aircraft for the Flygvapnet in 1946, which spawned the Saab 29 ‘Tunnan’ fighter and the Saab B31 light bomber. Both aircraft were initially designed around the de Havilland Goblin turbojet of British origin, but when the more powerful de Havilland Ghost became available, this was chosen as the standard powerplant. Both aircraft incorporated such modern features as swept wings or ejection seats.
The Saab B31 was originally developed as a straightforward tactical bomber replacement for the Saab 18, called the Saab B31, which would carry its free-fall ordnance internally in a bomb bay. The Saab B31 had a streamlined, drop-shaped fuselage. A crew of two were envisioned, the pilot and a navigator/bomb aimer. They would sit in separate cabins, a generously glazed nose section with an optical bombsight and a navigational/bomb aiming radar in a shallow blister underneath, and in a fighter-type cockpit on top of the hull, respectively. Swept wings were planned that would offer a good compromise between speed benefits and range/lift. Due to the aircraft’s size and weight, two de Havilland Ghost engines were required, but integrating these bulky centrifugal flow engines with a relatively large diameter turned out to be a design challenge.
Several layouts were evaluated, including engines buried in the rear fuselage with side air intakes, or engines mounted in wing root fairings with individual exhausts at the wings’ trailing edge. Eventually the Saab B31’s powerplants were directly mounted in nacelles under slightly swept (20°) shoulder wings, what made access and maintenance easy and kept the fuselage free for a huge fuel capacity, a generous bomb bay, and a conventional tricycle main landing gear. The latter’s tread width was quite narrow, though, which might have caused handling problems, so that during the bomber’s design refinements the landing gear arrangement was radically changed into a tandem layout. It eventually comprised of two main struts featuring large low-pressure twin wheels, supported by small outrigger wheels that semi-retracted into fairings under the bulbous engine nacelles. While unusual, this arrangement had the side benefit that the bomb bay could be lengthened and the fuel capacity in the fuselage could be increased without a center of gravity shift, with the rear/main landing gear strut well placed further aft, well behind the aircraft’s center of gravity. This, however, prevented normal rotation upon take-off, so that the front strut was lengthened to provide the aircraft with an imminent positive angle of attack while rolling, giving the Saab B31 a distinctive nose-up stance on the ground.
The enlarged bomb bay could hold up to four free-fall 340 kg bombs, the B31’s primary weapon. Additional ordinance, typically two further single bombs of up to 500 kg caliber, pods with unguided missiles, or drop tanks to extend range, could be carried on a pair of hard points outside of the engine nacelles. The maximum total payload was 2.400 kg. No offensive or defensive guns were carried, the B31 was supposed to rely only on speed and agility. Large air brakes on the aircraft’s flanks were introduced to prevent the exceeding of the B31’s design speed limit of Mach 0.9 in a dive, and they also helped to slow down the aircraft upon landing. To reduce the landing run length further a brake parachute was housed in an extended teardrop fairing on the fin that also held the swept horizontal stabilizers.
Overall, the Saab B31 reminded vaguely of the Soviet Yak-120/25 (NATO code Flashlight A) and of the French Sud-Ouest SO.4050 Vautour, which were both under development at the same time. Beyond the original tactical bomber role that was supposed to supersede the Swedish B 18, the Saab B31 was also intended to fulfill night/all-weather reconnaissance missions, outfitted with a camera and sensor pallet in the bomb bay and flash bombs on the wing hardpoints. Furthermore, the aircraft was proposed to become, in a second step, the basis for a jet-powered long-range all-weather fighter, a type of aircraft that was direly needed by Flygvapnet during the late Forties. The situation was so severe and urgent that the Swedish Air Force did not want to wait for a J31 development and had to procure sixty radar-equipped de Havilland Mosquito NF.30 night fighters from Great Britain as a hasty stopgap solution – a totally outdated model in the late Forties, but it was the best and only readily available off-the-rack solution.
In parallel, both engine and aircraft technology underwent dramatic developments and literally made leaps: In December 1948, an initial contract for the design and mockup of Saab's newly proposed P.1150 design was issued, a modern swept-wing design that already represented the next, transonic fighter aircraft generation. The resulting aircraft would become the Saab 32 ‘Lansen’ and it literally overtook the B31’s intended role as the Saab 18 bomber and attack aircraft replacement. However, a modern all-weather fighter with long range and a powerful radar was still not on the horizon, and, consequently, the Saab B31’s original bomber/reconnaissance version was dropped completely in favor of an optimized interceptor derivative with a powerful on-board radar: the J31. This was, however, also just a stopgap solution until an all-weather fighter version of the favored Saab 32 would be ready for service, so that a single aircraft type would take over multiple military roles and therewith simplify production, maintenance and logistics.
From that point on the Saab B31 was re-designed and optimized for a principal fighter role, with an attack capability as a secondary capability. However, due to its bomber origins and its intended mission profile the J31 was not intended to be a typical sleek and nimble dogfighter (that was the contemporary Saab 29’s role as a day fighter, even though a radar-equipped version of the Tunnan was on Saab’s drawing boards, too, yet not realized because compact systems were not available), but rather as a standoff night fighter which would loiter on station and patrol the air space, search for targets and then identify and engage them.
The bomber’s large air brakes were a welcome feature to position the approaching fighter behind a potential slower target, which were primarily relatively cumbersome bombers that would come in at medium to high altitude and at subsonic speed. This mission profile heavily influenced the J31 design and also set boundaries that were later hard to overcome and develop the aircraft’s potential further. While the light bomber basis would meet the required demands concerning range, speed and limited agility, the obligatory radar and its periphery to fulfill the N/AW fighter mission led to a major re-design of the forward fuselage. A large radar dish under a solid nose radome now occupied the formerly glazed nose section, and the radar operator was placed together with the pilot in a new pressurized side-by-side cockpit under a common canopy. A large and relatively flat forward windshield was used; while not conducive to high-speed flight, it provided distortion-free external visibility, something that was particularly valued for a night fighter at that time. Both pilot and navigator/radar operator had full steering equipment, what also made a dedicated trainer version unnecessary. Both sticks were extendable so that more force could be exerted upon it by the pilot as a fallback measure in the event of a hydraulic failure. Bleed air from the engines was used to de-ice the wings’ and tail surfaces’ leading edges and the engines’ air intakes, so that the aircraft could operate even in harsh climatic conditions.
Radar and fire control system for the J31 were created and produced by Ericsson and called “Gryning” (= Dawn). The system was quite advanced for the time even though complex: a combination of three different radars, each performing separate functions. The system comprised a search radar, a tracking radar, both located in the nose under a huge mutual radome, and a tail warning radar with a separate, smaller antenna. The search radar covered the front hemisphere and could detect aircraft at distances up to 35 kilometres (about 20 miles) away while the tracking radar could achieve a weapons lock up to 4 km (2.5 miles) away. Additionally, the Gryning system had a limited look-down capability, being able to detect aircraft that flew underneath the J31 at an altitude of down to 800 m (2.600 ft). The tail-mounted surveillance radar was effective up to 15 km (almost 10 miles) away. The complexity of this vacuum tube-based radar system, produced before the advent of semiconductor electronics, required a lot of internal space and intensive maintenance to keep it operating properly – and it would have been much too big or heavy to fit into the more modern but also more slender Saab 32 airframe.
The armament was changed, too. While the B31 bomber was intended to carry no guns at all the fighter derivative was now armed with four 20 mm cannon in the lower nose, plus two retractable unguided air-to-air missile racks in the former bomb bay in tandem, carrying a total of 96 projectiles, which were supposed to be fired singly, short bursts or in one or more massive salvoes against bomber formations, covering a huge field of fire and ensuring a takedown even with a single hit. This core armament was complemented by a pair of underwing hardpoints outside of the engine nacelles which could carry pods with further 18 unguided missiles each, iron bombs of up to 500 kg calibre for a secondary attack capability, or 570 l drop tanks to extend the J31’s range and loiter time.
An initial order for three prototypes was placed by the Swedish government, and on 16 October 1950, the first J31, even though still lacking the radar, conducted its maiden flight. The flight test program proceeded relatively smoothly, but the performance was rather poor for a fighter. More powerful engines were required, but choices for Saab were very limited. The use of the Saab 29’s indigenous afterburner variant of the Ghost (which was by then license-produced in Sweden as the Svenska Flygmotor RM2) was deemed inefficient for the large aircraft, so that attempts were made to improve the Ghost’s dry thrust for the J31 without an increased fuel consumption through reheat. This new indigenous engine variant became the RM2F (“förstärkt” = “powered-up”), which provided 5,400 lbf (24.02 kN) of thrust with water-alcohol injection instead of the RM2’s original dry 5,000 lbf (22 kN) maximum thrust. The tank for the required water-alcohol mixture was carried in the rear half of the former bomb bay and replaced one of the unguided missile racks. These were hardly ever used operationally, though, and soon completely removed, replaced by a second water-alcohol tank, which gave the aircraft enough endurance of 30 minutes at the increased thrust output level.
A follow-on order for six pre-production aircraft was soon received, which were still equipped with the weaker original RM2 and designated J31A. These machines were delivered to F 1 Västmanland Flygflottilj at Hässlö air base in Central Sweden, which just had been converted from a bomber to a night fighter unit, having been equipped with the J 30 Mosquitos. There the J31 was evaluated against the J30 until early 1951 and deemed superior in almost every aspect. With these satisfactory results, a full production order for 54 more aircraft was placed in mid-1951. These machines were now outfitted with more powerful RM2F engines and other refinements and designated J31B. This became the type’s operational main variant. All were delivered to F 1 where they were exclusively operated and gradually replaced the J 30s. In service the J31 received the unofficial nickname “Val” (= Whale), due to its bulky yet streamlined shape, but it was officially never adopted.
During regular maintenance in the following two years, the six early J31As received the stronger RM2F, together with the second water-alcohol tank as well as some avionics updates and were accordingly re-designated J31Bs. Further updates included wipers for the windscreen (a serious issue esp. at slow speed and while taxiing) and two smaller brake parachutes instead of the single large original one.
All J31s were delivered in a natural metal finish and retained it throughout their career; only two machines ever received camouflage during trials, but this measure was deemed unnecessary for the aircraft due to their role. Some aircraft of F 1’s 3rd squadron and operated by the unit’s staff flight had the aircrafts’ fins painted in dark green, though, to improve the contrast to the tactical code letters’ colour, yellow or white, respectively. The J31s’ radomes were made from fiberglass and originally tinted in opaque black. During maintenance and after damage, however, some machines received newly produced replacement fairings which were untinted/semi-transparent.
The only major update the J31B received was rolled out starting in 1958, when the IR-guided Rb24 (AIM-9B Sidewinder AAM) was introduced in the Swedish Air Force. Together with the J29 Tunnan fighters the J31s were outfitted to carry launch rails on the wing hardpoints – even though only a single pair could be carried in total. This, however, markedly improved the type’s combat efficiency, and it would take until the Saab 35F in 1965 with its Rb27/28 Falcon missiles to introduce more capable guided anti-aircraft missiles. Since the Rb24s extended the J31’s weapon range considerably, a potential gun upgrade with 30 mm cannons was not executed and Saab’s resources rather allocated into the Saab 32’s development.
Even though the J31B was a capable night and all-weather fighter for its time, it was limited due to its outdated weaponry and quickly superseded by advancing radar, engine and aerodynamic technologies. It did its job but lacked development and performance potential – and it was a large and complicated aircraft that required lots of maintenance. However, the J31 turned out to be a very stable and robust weapon platform, and it was quite popular among the crews because of the spacious cockpit, even though the field of view on the ground was very limited, due to the tall landing gear front leg, and several J31s were involved in taxiing accidents. Due to its twin engines and radar intercept operator, pilots gained more confidence on long missions in the remote northern areas of. Sweden, esp. on mission over open water.
When the Saab 32’s fighter version, the J 32B, eventually became operational in 1958, it was clear that the heavy and highly limited twin-engine J31B would not remain in service for much longer. By 1963 all machines had been retired from frontline service, initially stored in reserve but scrapped by 1970. Two machines remained operational, though: as flying test beds for the Swedish Air Force’s Försökscentralen (FC) at Malmen AB, where they served until 1981 – primarily to test radar and missile guidance systems, and as radar targets for war games and anti-aircraft unit trainings.
General characteristics:
Crew: 2
Length: 15,76 m (51 ft 7 1/2 in)
Wingspan: 16.96 m (55 ft 2/3 in)
Height: 4,21 m (13 ft 9 1/2 in)
Wing area: 45 m2 (480 sq ft)
Empty weight: 9,000 kg (19,823 lb)
Gross weight: 17,500 kg (38,546 lb)
….Max takeoff weight: 19,000 kg (41,850 lb)
Fuel capacity: 5,100 L (1,350 US gal / 1,120 imp gal) maximum internal fuel
plus 2x 570 L (150 US gal, 120 imp gal) optional drop-tanks
Powerplant:
2× Svenska Flygmotor RM2F centrifugal-flow turbojet engine (Rolls Royce Ghost), each with
4,750 lbf (21.1 kN) dry thrust at 10,250 rpm and
5,400 lbf (24.02 kN) with temporary water-alcohol injection
Performance:
Maximum speed: 1,090 km/h (677 mph, 588 kn; Mach 0.9) at 10,000 ft (3,000 m)
Cruise speed: 732 km/h (455 mph, 395 kn)
Stall speed: 150 km/h (92.8 mph, 80.6 kn) with approach power
Combat range: 1.850 km (1,145 mi, 995 nmi) on internals
Ferry range: 2.200 km (1,375 mi, 1,195 nmi) with 2× 570 l drop-tanks
Service ceiling: 16,200 m (53,062 ft)
Rate of climb: 40 m/s (7.681 ft/min)
Wing loading: 87.1 lb/sq ft (388 kg/m²)
Thrust/weight: 0.32
Armament:
4× 20 mm (0.79 in) akan m/47C (license produced Hispano Mark V) autocannon with 220 RPG
48× 75 mm (3.0 in) srak m/55 (Bofors 75 mm (3.0 in) rocket "Frida") unguided air-to-air missiles
with contact fuze high-capacity warhead on retractable rack in ventral bay
(not used operationally, later completely deleted in favor of a second water-alcohol tank)
2× wet underwing hardpoints outside of the engine nacelles for 600 kg (1.321 lb) each;
alternatively a pair of Rb24 (AIM9-B Sidewinder) IR-guided air-to-air missiles
The model and its assembly:
While it does not look spectacular, the J31 (actually my second use of this designation for a Swedish Fifties all-weather fighter, the first was an A.W. Meteor NF.14, but the “31” was lent from the Spitfire PR.XIX in Swedish service as S31) was a major creation feat. It all started with a discussion with fellow Swedish board member Pellson at whatifmodellers.com about Saab prototypes, esp. the early designs. That made me wonder about a twin-jet engine aircraft, something that could replace the Saab 18 bombers much like the BAC Canberra with the RAF’s Mosquito – and looking at similar international projects of the time like the Soviet Il-29 and Yak-25 as well as the French S.O. 4050 Vautour I thought that something similar could work well for Sweden, too.
My concept started with a primary light bomber and attack role, much like the B18 and the Canberra, with the outlook to develop a radar-bearing all-weather fighter from it, which was direly needed in Sweden in the Mid-Fifties and led to the procurement of two interim types in real life, the J30 (Mosquito night fighter) and the J33 (Venom night fighter), while plans were made to equip the J29 with a radar and the Saab 32 already on the drawing boards, even though the latter’s fighter version would be delayed well into the Sixties.
The core of the build was a leftover fuselage from a Matchbox F3D Skyknight – from an incomplete kit that came OOB with one of its three sprue trees double (even though in different colours!). The canopy was also still there, and now I eventually found a good use for it. However, not much more would be taken over from the Skyknight, because the overall layout would be much different, dictated by the bulky centrifugal flow engines that were (only) available to Sweden in the late Forties and which also powered the successful J29 Tunnan. The engines could, due to their diameter and the need for ducts, not be buried in the fuselage, so that they would go under the wings, directly attached to them as in the Il-29 and Vautour. The wings would be slightly swept (around 20°), as a compromise between modernism (as on the J29) and good range/endurance, and shoulder-mounted for good ground clearance and to avoid FOP (an issue of the Yak-25).
Since the engine pods should not be too large and bulky I decided that the main wheels would not retract into them (à la Il-28) and rather follow the Vautour route: with a tandem arrangement retracting into the fuselage and with small outrigger wheels. This had, for the original bomber version, the benefit, that the internal bomb bay could become longer than with a more conventional tricycle landing gear arrangement that would full retract into the hull, much like the Douglas A3D/B.66, with a wider track. And it would look more exotic, too.
With this concept I started a donor parts safari and started work on the fuselage. First major feat was to clean the F3D’s flanks from its original engine fairings – thankfully the Matchbox kit provides them as separate parts, so omitting them was simple, but there were enough major recesses and areas beyond the F3D’s basically teardrop shape hull that had to be filled and PSRed, including the original wing attachment points in the hull’s middle.
Another issue was the cockpit, which was missing through the double sprues. I was lucky to find an original Matchbox F3D tub in the spare box, from my first Skyknight build ever in the late Eighties (then built as a Vietnam era EF-10). New seats were procured as well as two (ugly) pilot figures and a dashboard from an Italeri Tornado IDS. However, the cockpit would later cause some more trouble…
The nose was generously filled with steel balls to keep it down (you never know…), and once the hull was closed, I implanted a new rear landing gear well. In the meantime, I kept searching for engine nacelle and wing parts – both turned out to be challenging. Not that I had not enough material to choose from, but I wanted to make the parts to be as authentic as possible – the nacelles conveying a centrifugal engine inside (see the Gloster Meteor for reference), and the light wing sweep angle as well as the desire for a not-too-modern look made the wing choice really hard.
The nacelles were completed first. I remembered some leftover parts from a Matchbox Meteor night fighter, mainly the intakes, which would be perfect. But the rest of the nacelles took a while to materialize. Eventually I found engine pods from a Hobbycraft Su-25, which are separate pieces. They had a more or less square diameter shape, but their size was good and so I combined them with the round (and bigger!) Meteor NF.14 intakes, after having added trimmed-down intake cones from a Trumpeter Il-28 inside, and PSRing the different shapes into something …more natural. Even though outrigger wheels would later be added I omitted eventual wells at this point, because I had to define the stance through the tandem main wheels first, and this was still tbd.
The wing donors became a lengthy affair. At one point I became so desperate that I tried to use the wing tips from a VEB Plasticart 1:100 Tu-20/95 bomber, but that failed (thankfully!) because the parts turned out to be warped and simply too ugly for the build. I did not find any suitable material in The Stash™, tested wings from an A-6 and an F-14, nothing worked well. I eventually procured – in a forlorn move – a vintage Revell 1:113 B-47 kit. Horrible thing, but its outer wings were useful, even though they required massive modifications. Their roots were cut away to reduce span and their angle was set at about 20°; the slender tips were also cut off, resulting in an almost trapezoid shape with a slightly extended wing chord at the trailing edge of the roots. Lots of PSR was required to improve the surface and to fill some gaps from the OOB engine pod attachment points of the B-47. Ugh.
At that point I had also already found a good fin: from an Academy/Minicraft 1:144 B-1B bomber! This not only offered a very Fifties-esque round and swept shape, it also had suitable attachment points for the stabilizers for a cruciform tail, which appeared necessary due to the engines’ wing position. As a side benefit, I could use the B-47’s wing tips as stabilizers, even though they had to be PSRed a lot, too.
To attach the new wings to the F3D fuselage I made cutouts at shoulder height, but the engine pods were first mounted and PSRed under the wings. More putty and sanding mess, but it was worthwhile.
In the meantime I worked on the landing gear and used parts from the ugly VEB Plasticart Tu-20/95 to scratch a tandem layout with twin wheels and a significant nose-up stance (due to the rear wheels’ position beyond the aircraft’s centre of gravity). Once this was settled and the wings in place I could work on the outrigger wheels. These were procured from a Matchbox 1:72 Sea Harrier and mounted in scratched fairings under the engine pods, so that they could semi-retract. With the ground clearance defined by the main wheels a suitable position and length for the outriggers could be found, and in the end the J31 has a proper stance with all four legs on the ground.
Painting and markings:
I like to apply simple liveries to weird builds, and for the J31 I settled upon a NMF finish – which was typical for the contemporary J29 Tunnan fighters, too. Only the reconnaissance versions as well as the fighters of as single operational unit were ever camouflaged (in dark green and dark blue). The only other realistic cammo option would have been the standard Swedish uniform dark green over blue grey. But bare metal appeared IMHO much better suited.
As a non-standard measure the model received an overall thin coat of grey primer, primarily to identify dents and notches on its many PSRed surface areas – a good move, because a lot of small flaws could be identified and treated before a final overall coat with “White Aluminium” from a rattle can (Duplicolor, RAL 9006) was applied and details like the radome, antennae (both in black) and the landing gear and its wells (in a light bronze tone, seen on Saab 29s and 32s) were painted in detail. I think the silver underlines the J31’s clean lines well?
The model received a light black ink washing, less for true weathering but to emphasize engraved details and for a “cloudier” look of the NMF surfaces. This was further enhanced through a careful treatment with grinded graphite (which adds a truly metallic shine to the paint), and since a lot of surface details were lost through PSR I did some manual panel-shading with different silver tones and re-created panel lines all over the hull with a soft pencil, mostly free-handedly. Quite simple, but it improves the overall impression a lot.
Decals were puzzled together. The Swedish roundels came from a generic TL-Modellbau sheet, the “T” on the tail was scratched from generic white and blue stripes from the same manufacturer. The blue band around the nose was made with the same material, plus a white “T” – inspired by tactical markings from some J29s from the Fifties. Some stencils were collected from the scrap box, and black walkway borders added to the wings’ upper surfaces and the spine behind the cockpit. As a side benefit these hide some lingering inconsistencies on the wing surfaces well.
Finally, the model was sealed with semi-gloss acrylic varnish (Italeri) for a shiny finish, except for the radomes, which became matt.
It might not look spectacular or exciting, but I am quite proud of this “second” J31, because it not only was a major kitbashing project, it also conveys the Fifties “look and feel” I wanted to catch, like its contemporaries S.O. 4050 Vautour, Yak-25, or even the stillborn Baade Ba-152 airliner. From that point it turned out very well, and going for a simple NMF livery was IMHO also a good move – the J31 has a certain “space age” look? At least, this is what you can get when you combine major parts from F3D, B-47. B1, Il-28, Su-25, Tu-95 and a Gloster Meteor… 😉
On a warm afternoon in the heart of Brooklyn, distress calls flood the airwaves of a madman in full body armor terrorizing the streets. As NYPD clears the area of civilians, strategically placed bombs bring local government buildings crumbling to the ground. The NYPD special task force has arrived on the scene to find the assailant has placed a bio-weapon in one of the devastated buildings. Realizing the situation is beyond their ability – the commander decides to fallback and contacts the Commissioner…
…after receiving the SITREP by Task Force Commander Higgins; and appropriately grilling his team for their incompetence, the Commissioner calls in a personal favor to one of his poker buddies — a 3-Star general over at the Pentagon.
In less than an hour, COBALT Team arrives on the scene with their orders in-hand:DISARM AND DETAIN.
The following narration is a first-person perspective of that mission...cont' at bit.ly/1iwBymq
Fallback is a deluxe class toy from the "Reveal the Shield", pictured in robot mode.
Originally called Outback in G1, he's a redeco of ROTF Brawn, just like his old G1 toy.
On a warm afternoon in the heart of Brooklyn, distress calls flood the airwaves of a madman in full body armor terrorizing the streets. As NYPD clears the area of civilians, strategically placed bombs bring local government buildings crumbling to the ground. The NYPD special task force has arrived on the scene to find the assailant has placed a bio-weapon in one of the devastated buildings. Realizing the situation is beyond their ability – the commander decides to fallback and contacts the Commissioner…
…after receiving the SITREP by Task Force Commander Higgins; and appropriately grilling his team for their incompetence, the Commissioner calls in a personal favor to one of his poker buddies — a 3-Star general over at the Pentagon.
In less than an hour, COBALT Team arrives on the scene with their orders in-hand:DISARM AND DETAIN.
The following narration is a first-person perspective of that mission...cont' at bit.ly/1iwBymq
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The SAAB B31 was a Swedish jet-powered multirole aircraft, originally designed to serve as a tactical bomber, ground attack, reconnaissance and interceptor aircraft. In the aftermath of the Second World War, Sweden set about the rebuilding and modernization of its armed forces. Regarding aviation, jet propulsion had been identified as the powerplant of the future, and experience with the SAAB 21R, which had been converted from a propeller-pusher aircraft into a jet-powered fighter and attack aircraft in 1947, bolstered confidence in the home industry’s competence. The Saab 21R was only an interim solution, though. One hundred and twenty-four aircraft were planned but this number was reduced to only 64 and they were mainly used as fighter-bombers. The Flygvapnet’s standard post-war bomber, the Saab 18, a twin piston-engine design from 1944, was outdated, too, and its performance was regarded as inadequate for the Fifties. This led to a major development initiative for modern jet aircraft for the Flygvapnet in 1946, which spawned the Saab 29 ‘Tunnan’ fighter and the Saab B31 light bomber. Both aircraft were initially designed around the de Havilland Goblin turbojet of British origin, but when the more powerful de Havilland Ghost became available, this was chosen as the standard powerplant. Both aircraft incorporated such modern features as swept wings or ejection seats.
The Saab B31 was originally developed as a straightforward tactical bomber replacement for the Saab 18, called the Saab B31, which would carry its free-fall ordnance internally in a bomb bay. The Saab B31 had a streamlined, drop-shaped fuselage. A crew of two were envisioned, the pilot and a navigator/bomb aimer. They would sit in separate cabins, a generously glazed nose section with an optical bombsight and a navigational/bomb aiming radar in a shallow blister underneath, and in a fighter-type cockpit on top of the hull, respectively. Swept wings were planned that would offer a good compromise between speed benefits and range/lift. Due to the aircraft’s size and weight, two de Havilland Ghost engines were required, but integrating these bulky centrifugal flow engines with a relatively large diameter turned out to be a design challenge.
Several layouts were evaluated, including engines buried in the rear fuselage with side air intakes, or engines mounted in wing root fairings with individual exhausts at the wings’ trailing edge. Eventually the Saab B31’s powerplants were directly mounted in nacelles under slightly swept (20°) shoulder wings, what made access and maintenance easy and kept the fuselage free for a huge fuel capacity, a generous bomb bay, and a conventional tricycle main landing gear. The latter’s tread width was quite narrow, though, which might have caused handling problems, so that during the bomber’s design refinements the landing gear arrangement was radically changed into a tandem layout. It eventually comprised of two main struts featuring large low-pressure twin wheels, supported by small outrigger wheels that semi-retracted into fairings under the bulbous engine nacelles. While unusual, this arrangement had the side benefit that the bomb bay could be lengthened and the fuel capacity in the fuselage could be increased without a center of gravity shift, with the rear/main landing gear strut well placed further aft, well behind the aircraft’s center of gravity. This, however, prevented normal rotation upon take-off, so that the front strut was lengthened to provide the aircraft with an imminent positive angle of attack while rolling, giving the Saab B31 a distinctive nose-up stance on the ground.
The enlarged bomb bay could hold up to four free-fall 340 kg bombs, the B31’s primary weapon. Additional ordinance, typically two further single bombs of up to 500 kg caliber, pods with unguided missiles, or drop tanks to extend range, could be carried on a pair of hard points outside of the engine nacelles. The maximum total payload was 2.400 kg. No offensive or defensive guns were carried, the B31 was supposed to rely only on speed and agility. Large air brakes on the aircraft’s flanks were introduced to prevent the exceeding of the B31’s design speed limit of Mach 0.9 in a dive, and they also helped to slow down the aircraft upon landing. To reduce the landing run length further a brake parachute was housed in an extended teardrop fairing on the fin that also held the swept horizontal stabilizers.
Overall, the Saab B31 reminded vaguely of the Soviet Yak-120/25 (NATO code Flashlight A) and of the French Sud-Ouest SO.4050 Vautour, which were both under development at the same time. Beyond the original tactical bomber role that was supposed to supersede the Swedish B 18, the Saab B31 was also intended to fulfill night/all-weather reconnaissance missions, outfitted with a camera and sensor pallet in the bomb bay and flash bombs on the wing hardpoints. Furthermore, the aircraft was proposed to become, in a second step, the basis for a jet-powered long-range all-weather fighter, a type of aircraft that was direly needed by Flygvapnet during the late Forties. The situation was so severe and urgent that the Swedish Air Force did not want to wait for a J31 development and had to procure sixty radar-equipped de Havilland Mosquito NF.30 night fighters from Great Britain as a hasty stopgap solution – a totally outdated model in the late Forties, but it was the best and only readily available off-the-rack solution.
In parallel, both engine and aircraft technology underwent dramatic developments and literally made leaps: In December 1948, an initial contract for the design and mockup of Saab's newly proposed P.1150 design was issued, a modern swept-wing design that already represented the next, transonic fighter aircraft generation. The resulting aircraft would become the Saab 32 ‘Lansen’ and it literally overtook the B31’s intended role as the Saab 18 bomber and attack aircraft replacement. However, a modern all-weather fighter with long range and a powerful radar was still not on the horizon, and, consequently, the Saab B31’s original bomber/reconnaissance version was dropped completely in favor of an optimized interceptor derivative with a powerful on-board radar: the J31. This was, however, also just a stopgap solution until an all-weather fighter version of the favored Saab 32 would be ready for service, so that a single aircraft type would take over multiple military roles and therewith simplify production, maintenance and logistics.
From that point on the Saab B31 was re-designed and optimized for a principal fighter role, with an attack capability as a secondary capability. However, due to its bomber origins and its intended mission profile the J31 was not intended to be a typical sleek and nimble dogfighter (that was the contemporary Saab 29’s role as a day fighter, even though a radar-equipped version of the Tunnan was on Saab’s drawing boards, too, yet not realized because compact systems were not available), but rather as a standoff night fighter which would loiter on station and patrol the air space, search for targets and then identify and engage them.
The bomber’s large air brakes were a welcome feature to position the approaching fighter behind a potential slower target, which were primarily relatively cumbersome bombers that would come in at medium to high altitude and at subsonic speed. This mission profile heavily influenced the J31 design and also set boundaries that were later hard to overcome and develop the aircraft’s potential further. While the light bomber basis would meet the required demands concerning range, speed and limited agility, the obligatory radar and its periphery to fulfill the N/AW fighter mission led to a major re-design of the forward fuselage. A large radar dish under a solid nose radome now occupied the formerly glazed nose section, and the radar operator was placed together with the pilot in a new pressurized side-by-side cockpit under a common canopy. A large and relatively flat forward windshield was used; while not conducive to high-speed flight, it provided distortion-free external visibility, something that was particularly valued for a night fighter at that time. Both pilot and navigator/radar operator had full steering equipment, what also made a dedicated trainer version unnecessary. Both sticks were extendable so that more force could be exerted upon it by the pilot as a fallback measure in the event of a hydraulic failure. Bleed air from the engines was used to de-ice the wings’ and tail surfaces’ leading edges and the engines’ air intakes, so that the aircraft could operate even in harsh climatic conditions.
Radar and fire control system for the J31 were created and produced by Ericsson and called “Gryning” (= Dawn). The system was quite advanced for the time even though complex: a combination of three different radars, each performing separate functions. The system comprised a search radar, a tracking radar, both located in the nose under a huge mutual radome, and a tail warning radar with a separate, smaller antenna. The search radar covered the front hemisphere and could detect aircraft at distances up to 35 kilometres (about 20 miles) away while the tracking radar could achieve a weapons lock up to 4 km (2.5 miles) away. Additionally, the Gryning system had a limited look-down capability, being able to detect aircraft that flew underneath the J31 at an altitude of down to 800 m (2.600 ft). The tail-mounted surveillance radar was effective up to 15 km (almost 10 miles) away. The complexity of this vacuum tube-based radar system, produced before the advent of semiconductor electronics, required a lot of internal space and intensive maintenance to keep it operating properly – and it would have been much too big or heavy to fit into the more modern but also more slender Saab 32 airframe.
The armament was changed, too. While the B31 bomber was intended to carry no guns at all the fighter derivative was now armed with four 20 mm cannon in the lower nose, plus two retractable unguided air-to-air missile racks in the former bomb bay in tandem, carrying a total of 96 projectiles, which were supposed to be fired singly, short bursts or in one or more massive salvoes against bomber formations, covering a huge field of fire and ensuring a takedown even with a single hit. This core armament was complemented by a pair of underwing hardpoints outside of the engine nacelles which could carry pods with further 18 unguided missiles each, iron bombs of up to 500 kg calibre for a secondary attack capability, or 570 l drop tanks to extend the J31’s range and loiter time.
An initial order for three prototypes was placed by the Swedish government, and on 16 October 1950, the first J31, even though still lacking the radar, conducted its maiden flight. The flight test program proceeded relatively smoothly, but the performance was rather poor for a fighter. More powerful engines were required, but choices for Saab were very limited. The use of the Saab 29’s indigenous afterburner variant of the Ghost (which was by then license-produced in Sweden as the Svenska Flygmotor RM2) was deemed inefficient for the large aircraft, so that attempts were made to improve the Ghost’s dry thrust for the J31 without an increased fuel consumption through reheat. This new indigenous engine variant became the RM2F (“förstärkt” = “powered-up”), which provided 5,400 lbf (24.02 kN) of thrust with water-alcohol injection instead of the RM2’s original dry 5,000 lbf (22 kN) maximum thrust. The tank for the required water-alcohol mixture was carried in the rear half of the former bomb bay and replaced one of the unguided missile racks. These were hardly ever used operationally, though, and soon completely removed, replaced by a second water-alcohol tank, which gave the aircraft enough endurance of 30 minutes at the increased thrust output level.
A follow-on order for six pre-production aircraft was soon received, which were still equipped with the weaker original RM2 and designated J31A. These machines were delivered to F 1 Västmanland Flygflottilj at Hässlö air base in Central Sweden, which just had been converted from a bomber to a night fighter unit, having been equipped with the J 30 Mosquitos. There the J31 was evaluated against the J30 until early 1951 and deemed superior in almost every aspect. With these satisfactory results, a full production order for 54 more aircraft was placed in mid-1951. These machines were now outfitted with more powerful RM2F engines and other refinements and designated J31B. This became the type’s operational main variant. All were delivered to F 1 where they were exclusively operated and gradually replaced the J 30s. In service the J31 received the unofficial nickname “Val” (= Whale), due to its bulky yet streamlined shape, but it was officially never adopted.
During regular maintenance in the following two years, the six early J31As received the stronger RM2F, together with the second water-alcohol tank as well as some avionics updates and were accordingly re-designated J31Bs. Further updates included wipers for the windscreen (a serious issue esp. at slow speed and while taxiing) and two smaller brake parachutes instead of the single large original one.
All J31s were delivered in a natural metal finish and retained it throughout their career; only two machines ever received camouflage during trials, but this measure was deemed unnecessary for the aircraft due to their role. Some aircraft of F 1’s 3rd squadron and operated by the unit’s staff flight had the aircrafts’ fins painted in dark green, though, to improve the contrast to the tactical code letters’ colour, yellow or white, respectively. The J31s’ radomes were made from fiberglass and originally tinted in opaque black. During maintenance and after damage, however, some machines received newly produced replacement fairings which were untinted/semi-transparent.
The only major update the J31B received was rolled out starting in 1958, when the IR-guided Rb24 (AIM-9B Sidewinder AAM) was introduced in the Swedish Air Force. Together with the J29 Tunnan fighters the J31s were outfitted to carry launch rails on the wing hardpoints – even though only a single pair could be carried in total. This, however, markedly improved the type’s combat efficiency, and it would take until the Saab 35F in 1965 with its Rb27/28 Falcon missiles to introduce more capable guided anti-aircraft missiles. Since the Rb24s extended the J31’s weapon range considerably, a potential gun upgrade with 30 mm cannons was not executed and Saab’s resources rather allocated into the Saab 32’s development.
Even though the J31B was a capable night and all-weather fighter for its time, it was limited due to its outdated weaponry and quickly superseded by advancing radar, engine and aerodynamic technologies. It did its job but lacked development and performance potential – and it was a large and complicated aircraft that required lots of maintenance. However, the J31 turned out to be a very stable and robust weapon platform, and it was quite popular among the crews because of the spacious cockpit, even though the field of view on the ground was very limited, due to the tall landing gear front leg, and several J31s were involved in taxiing accidents. Due to its twin engines and radar intercept operator, pilots gained more confidence on long missions in the remote northern areas of. Sweden, esp. on mission over open water.
When the Saab 32’s fighter version, the J 32B, eventually became operational in 1958, it was clear that the heavy and highly limited twin-engine J31B would not remain in service for much longer. By 1963 all machines had been retired from frontline service, initially stored in reserve but scrapped by 1970. Two machines remained operational, though: as flying test beds for the Swedish Air Force’s Försökscentralen (FC) at Malmen AB, where they served until 1981 – primarily to test radar and missile guidance systems, and as radar targets for war games and anti-aircraft unit trainings.
General characteristics:
Crew: 2
Length: 15,76 m (51 ft 7 1/2 in)
Wingspan: 16.96 m (55 ft 2/3 in)
Height: 4,21 m (13 ft 9 1/2 in)
Wing area: 45 m2 (480 sq ft)
Empty weight: 9,000 kg (19,823 lb)
Gross weight: 17,500 kg (38,546 lb)
….Max takeoff weight: 19,000 kg (41,850 lb)
Fuel capacity: 5,100 L (1,350 US gal / 1,120 imp gal) maximum internal fuel
plus 2x 570 L (150 US gal, 120 imp gal) optional drop-tanks
Powerplant:
2× Svenska Flygmotor RM2F centrifugal-flow turbojet engine (Rolls Royce Ghost), each with
4,750 lbf (21.1 kN) dry thrust at 10,250 rpm and
5,400 lbf (24.02 kN) with temporary water-alcohol injection
Performance:
Maximum speed: 1,090 km/h (677 mph, 588 kn; Mach 0.9) at 10,000 ft (3,000 m)
Cruise speed: 732 km/h (455 mph, 395 kn)
Stall speed: 150 km/h (92.8 mph, 80.6 kn) with approach power
Combat range: 1.850 km (1,145 mi, 995 nmi) on internals
Ferry range: 2.200 km (1,375 mi, 1,195 nmi) with 2× 570 l drop-tanks
Service ceiling: 16,200 m (53,062 ft)
Rate of climb: 40 m/s (7.681 ft/min)
Wing loading: 87.1 lb/sq ft (388 kg/m²)
Thrust/weight: 0.32
Armament:
4× 20 mm (0.79 in) akan m/47C (license produced Hispano Mark V) autocannon with 220 RPG
48× 75 mm (3.0 in) srak m/55 (Bofors 75 mm (3.0 in) rocket "Frida") unguided air-to-air missiles
with contact fuze high-capacity warhead on retractable rack in ventral bay
(not used operationally, later completely deleted in favor of a second water-alcohol tank)
2× wet underwing hardpoints outside of the engine nacelles for 600 kg (1.321 lb) each;
alternatively a pair of Rb24 (AIM9-B Sidewinder) IR-guided air-to-air missiles
The model and its assembly:
While it does not look spectacular, the J31 (actually my second use of this designation for a Swedish Fifties all-weather fighter, the first was an A.W. Meteor NF.14, but the “31” was lent from the Spitfire PR.XIX in Swedish service as S31) was a major creation feat. It all started with a discussion with fellow Swedish board member Pellson at whatifmodellers.com about Saab prototypes, esp. the early designs. That made me wonder about a twin-jet engine aircraft, something that could replace the Saab 18 bombers much like the BAC Canberra with the RAF’s Mosquito – and looking at similar international projects of the time like the Soviet Il-29 and Yak-25 as well as the French S.O. 4050 Vautour I thought that something similar could work well for Sweden, too.
My concept started with a primary light bomber and attack role, much like the B18 and the Canberra, with the outlook to develop a radar-bearing all-weather fighter from it, which was direly needed in Sweden in the Mid-Fifties and led to the procurement of two interim types in real life, the J30 (Mosquito night fighter) and the J33 (Venom night fighter), while plans were made to equip the J29 with a radar and the Saab 32 already on the drawing boards, even though the latter’s fighter version would be delayed well into the Sixties.
The core of the build was a leftover fuselage from a Matchbox F3D Skyknight – from an incomplete kit that came OOB with one of its three sprue trees double (even though in different colours!). The canopy was also still there, and now I eventually found a good use for it. However, not much more would be taken over from the Skyknight, because the overall layout would be much different, dictated by the bulky centrifugal flow engines that were (only) available to Sweden in the late Forties and which also powered the successful J29 Tunnan. The engines could, due to their diameter and the need for ducts, not be buried in the fuselage, so that they would go under the wings, directly attached to them as in the Il-29 and Vautour. The wings would be slightly swept (around 20°), as a compromise between modernism (as on the J29) and good range/endurance, and shoulder-mounted for good ground clearance and to avoid FOP (an issue of the Yak-25).
Since the engine pods should not be too large and bulky I decided that the main wheels would not retract into them (à la Il-28) and rather follow the Vautour route: with a tandem arrangement retracting into the fuselage and with small outrigger wheels. This had, for the original bomber version, the benefit, that the internal bomb bay could become longer than with a more conventional tricycle landing gear arrangement that would full retract into the hull, much like the Douglas A3D/B.66, with a wider track. And it would look more exotic, too.
With this concept I started a donor parts safari and started work on the fuselage. First major feat was to clean the F3D’s flanks from its original engine fairings – thankfully the Matchbox kit provides them as separate parts, so omitting them was simple, but there were enough major recesses and areas beyond the F3D’s basically teardrop shape hull that had to be filled and PSRed, including the original wing attachment points in the hull’s middle.
Another issue was the cockpit, which was missing through the double sprues. I was lucky to find an original Matchbox F3D tub in the spare box, from my first Skyknight build ever in the late Eighties (then built as a Vietnam era EF-10). New seats were procured as well as two (ugly) pilot figures and a dashboard from an Italeri Tornado IDS. However, the cockpit would later cause some more trouble…
The nose was generously filled with steel balls to keep it down (you never know…), and once the hull was closed, I implanted a new rear landing gear well. In the meantime, I kept searching for engine nacelle and wing parts – both turned out to be challenging. Not that I had not enough material to choose from, but I wanted to make the parts to be as authentic as possible – the nacelles conveying a centrifugal engine inside (see the Gloster Meteor for reference), and the light wing sweep angle as well as the desire for a not-too-modern look made the wing choice really hard.
The nacelles were completed first. I remembered some leftover parts from a Matchbox Meteor night fighter, mainly the intakes, which would be perfect. But the rest of the nacelles took a while to materialize. Eventually I found engine pods from a Hobbycraft Su-25, which are separate pieces. They had a more or less square diameter shape, but their size was good and so I combined them with the round (and bigger!) Meteor NF.14 intakes, after having added trimmed-down intake cones from a Trumpeter Il-28 inside, and PSRing the different shapes into something …more natural. Even though outrigger wheels would later be added I omitted eventual wells at this point, because I had to define the stance through the tandem main wheels first, and this was still tbd.
The wing donors became a lengthy affair. At one point I became so desperate that I tried to use the wing tips from a VEB Plasticart 1:100 Tu-20/95 bomber, but that failed (thankfully!) because the parts turned out to be warped and simply too ugly for the build. I did not find any suitable material in The Stash™, tested wings from an A-6 and an F-14, nothing worked well. I eventually procured – in a forlorn move – a vintage Revell 1:113 B-47 kit. Horrible thing, but its outer wings were useful, even though they required massive modifications. Their roots were cut away to reduce span and their angle was set at about 20°; the slender tips were also cut off, resulting in an almost trapezoid shape with a slightly extended wing chord at the trailing edge of the roots. Lots of PSR was required to improve the surface and to fill some gaps from the OOB engine pod attachment points of the B-47. Ugh.
At that point I had also already found a good fin: from an Academy/Minicraft 1:144 B-1B bomber! This not only offered a very Fifties-esque round and swept shape, it also had suitable attachment points for the stabilizers for a cruciform tail, which appeared necessary due to the engines’ wing position. As a side benefit, I could use the B-47’s wing tips as stabilizers, even though they had to be PSRed a lot, too.
To attach the new wings to the F3D fuselage I made cutouts at shoulder height, but the engine pods were first mounted and PSRed under the wings. More putty and sanding mess, but it was worthwhile.
In the meantime I worked on the landing gear and used parts from the ugly VEB Plasticart Tu-20/95 to scratch a tandem layout with twin wheels and a significant nose-up stance (due to the rear wheels’ position beyond the aircraft’s centre of gravity). Once this was settled and the wings in place I could work on the outrigger wheels. These were procured from a Matchbox 1:72 Sea Harrier and mounted in scratched fairings under the engine pods, so that they could semi-retract. With the ground clearance defined by the main wheels a suitable position and length for the outriggers could be found, and in the end the J31 has a proper stance with all four legs on the ground.
Painting and markings:
I like to apply simple liveries to weird builds, and for the J31 I settled upon a NMF finish – which was typical for the contemporary J29 Tunnan fighters, too. Only the reconnaissance versions as well as the fighters of as single operational unit were ever camouflaged (in dark green and dark blue). The only other realistic cammo option would have been the standard Swedish uniform dark green over blue grey. But bare metal appeared IMHO much better suited.
As a non-standard measure the model received an overall thin coat of grey primer, primarily to identify dents and notches on its many PSRed surface areas – a good move, because a lot of small flaws could be identified and treated before a final overall coat with “White Aluminium” from a rattle can (Duplicolor, RAL 9006) was applied and details like the radome, antennae (both in black) and the landing gear and its wells (in a light bronze tone, seen on Saab 29s and 32s) were painted in detail. I think the silver underlines the J31’s clean lines well?
The model received a light black ink washing, less for true weathering but to emphasize engraved details and for a “cloudier” look of the NMF surfaces. This was further enhanced through a careful treatment with grinded graphite (which adds a truly metallic shine to the paint), and since a lot of surface details were lost through PSR I did some manual panel-shading with different silver tones and re-created panel lines all over the hull with a soft pencil, mostly free-handedly. Quite simple, but it improves the overall impression a lot.
Decals were puzzled together. The Swedish roundels came from a generic TL-Modellbau sheet, the “T” on the tail was scratched from generic white and blue stripes from the same manufacturer. The blue band around the nose was made with the same material, plus a white “T” – inspired by tactical markings from some J29s from the Fifties. Some stencils were collected from the scrap box, and black walkway borders added to the wings’ upper surfaces and the spine behind the cockpit. As a side benefit these hide some lingering inconsistencies on the wing surfaces well.
Finally, the model was sealed with semi-gloss acrylic varnish (Italeri) for a shiny finish, except for the radomes, which became matt.
It might not look spectacular or exciting, but I am quite proud of this “second” J31, because it not only was a major kitbashing project, it also conveys the Fifties “look and feel” I wanted to catch, like its contemporaries S.O. 4050 Vautour, Yak-25, or even the stillborn Baade Ba-152 airliner. From that point it turned out very well, and going for a simple NMF livery was IMHO also a good move – the J31 has a certain “space age” look? At least, this is what you can get when you combine major parts from F3D, B-47. B1, Il-28, Su-25, Tu-95 and a Gloster Meteor… 😉
+++ DISCLAIMER +++
Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!
Some background:
The SAAB B31 was a Swedish jet-powered multirole aircraft, originally designed to serve as a tactical bomber, ground attack, reconnaissance and interceptor aircraft. In the aftermath of the Second World War, Sweden set about the rebuilding and modernization of its armed forces. Regarding aviation, jet propulsion had been identified as the powerplant of the future, and experience with the SAAB 21R, which had been converted from a propeller-pusher aircraft into a jet-powered fighter and attack aircraft in 1947, bolstered confidence in the home industry’s competence. The Saab 21R was only an interim solution, though. One hundred and twenty-four aircraft were planned but this number was reduced to only 64 and they were mainly used as fighter-bombers. The Flygvapnet’s standard post-war bomber, the Saab 18, a twin piston-engine design from 1944, was outdated, too, and its performance was regarded as inadequate for the Fifties. This led to a major development initiative for modern jet aircraft for the Flygvapnet in 1946, which spawned the Saab 29 ‘Tunnan’ fighter and the Saab B31 light bomber. Both aircraft were initially designed around the de Havilland Goblin turbojet of British origin, but when the more powerful de Havilland Ghost became available, this was chosen as the standard powerplant. Both aircraft incorporated such modern features as swept wings or ejection seats.
The Saab B31 was originally developed as a straightforward tactical bomber replacement for the Saab 18, called the Saab B31, which would carry its free-fall ordnance internally in a bomb bay. The Saab B31 had a streamlined, drop-shaped fuselage. A crew of two were envisioned, the pilot and a navigator/bomb aimer. They would sit in separate cabins, a generously glazed nose section with an optical bombsight and a navigational/bomb aiming radar in a shallow blister underneath, and in a fighter-type cockpit on top of the hull, respectively. Swept wings were planned that would offer a good compromise between speed benefits and range/lift. Due to the aircraft’s size and weight, two de Havilland Ghost engines were required, but integrating these bulky centrifugal flow engines with a relatively large diameter turned out to be a design challenge.
Several layouts were evaluated, including engines buried in the rear fuselage with side air intakes, or engines mounted in wing root fairings with individual exhausts at the wings’ trailing edge. Eventually the Saab B31’s powerplants were directly mounted in nacelles under slightly swept (20°) shoulder wings, what made access and maintenance easy and kept the fuselage free for a huge fuel capacity, a generous bomb bay, and a conventional tricycle main landing gear. The latter’s tread width was quite narrow, though, which might have caused handling problems, so that during the bomber’s design refinements the landing gear arrangement was radically changed into a tandem layout. It eventually comprised of two main struts featuring large low-pressure twin wheels, supported by small outrigger wheels that semi-retracted into fairings under the bulbous engine nacelles. While unusual, this arrangement had the side benefit that the bomb bay could be lengthened and the fuel capacity in the fuselage could be increased without a center of gravity shift, with the rear/main landing gear strut well placed further aft, well behind the aircraft’s center of gravity. This, however, prevented normal rotation upon take-off, so that the front strut was lengthened to provide the aircraft with an imminent positive angle of attack while rolling, giving the Saab B31 a distinctive nose-up stance on the ground.
The enlarged bomb bay could hold up to four free-fall 340 kg bombs, the B31’s primary weapon. Additional ordinance, typically two further single bombs of up to 500 kg caliber, pods with unguided missiles, or drop tanks to extend range, could be carried on a pair of hard points outside of the engine nacelles. The maximum total payload was 2.400 kg. No offensive or defensive guns were carried, the B31 was supposed to rely only on speed and agility. Large air brakes on the aircraft’s flanks were introduced to prevent the exceeding of the B31’s design speed limit of Mach 0.9 in a dive, and they also helped to slow down the aircraft upon landing. To reduce the landing run length further a brake parachute was housed in an extended teardrop fairing on the fin that also held the swept horizontal stabilizers.
Overall, the Saab B31 reminded vaguely of the Soviet Yak-120/25 (NATO code Flashlight A) and of the French Sud-Ouest SO.4050 Vautour, which were both under development at the same time. Beyond the original tactical bomber role that was supposed to supersede the Swedish B 18, the Saab B31 was also intended to fulfill night/all-weather reconnaissance missions, outfitted with a camera and sensor pallet in the bomb bay and flash bombs on the wing hardpoints. Furthermore, the aircraft was proposed to become, in a second step, the basis for a jet-powered long-range all-weather fighter, a type of aircraft that was direly needed by Flygvapnet during the late Forties. The situation was so severe and urgent that the Swedish Air Force did not want to wait for a J31 development and had to procure sixty radar-equipped de Havilland Mosquito NF.30 night fighters from Great Britain as a hasty stopgap solution – a totally outdated model in the late Forties, but it was the best and only readily available off-the-rack solution.
In parallel, both engine and aircraft technology underwent dramatic developments and literally made leaps: In December 1948, an initial contract for the design and mockup of Saab's newly proposed P.1150 design was issued, a modern swept-wing design that already represented the next, transonic fighter aircraft generation. The resulting aircraft would become the Saab 32 ‘Lansen’ and it literally overtook the B31’s intended role as the Saab 18 bomber and attack aircraft replacement. However, a modern all-weather fighter with long range and a powerful radar was still not on the horizon, and, consequently, the Saab B31’s original bomber/reconnaissance version was dropped completely in favor of an optimized interceptor derivative with a powerful on-board radar: the J31. This was, however, also just a stopgap solution until an all-weather fighter version of the favored Saab 32 would be ready for service, so that a single aircraft type would take over multiple military roles and therewith simplify production, maintenance and logistics.
From that point on the Saab B31 was re-designed and optimized for a principal fighter role, with an attack capability as a secondary capability. However, due to its bomber origins and its intended mission profile the J31 was not intended to be a typical sleek and nimble dogfighter (that was the contemporary Saab 29’s role as a day fighter, even though a radar-equipped version of the Tunnan was on Saab’s drawing boards, too, yet not realized because compact systems were not available), but rather as a standoff night fighter which would loiter on station and patrol the air space, search for targets and then identify and engage them.
The bomber’s large air brakes were a welcome feature to position the approaching fighter behind a potential slower target, which were primarily relatively cumbersome bombers that would come in at medium to high altitude and at subsonic speed. This mission profile heavily influenced the J31 design and also set boundaries that were later hard to overcome and develop the aircraft’s potential further. While the light bomber basis would meet the required demands concerning range, speed and limited agility, the obligatory radar and its periphery to fulfill the N/AW fighter mission led to a major re-design of the forward fuselage. A large radar dish under a solid nose radome now occupied the formerly glazed nose section, and the radar operator was placed together with the pilot in a new pressurized side-by-side cockpit under a common canopy. A large and relatively flat forward windshield was used; while not conducive to high-speed flight, it provided distortion-free external visibility, something that was particularly valued for a night fighter at that time. Both pilot and navigator/radar operator had full steering equipment, what also made a dedicated trainer version unnecessary. Both sticks were extendable so that more force could be exerted upon it by the pilot as a fallback measure in the event of a hydraulic failure. Bleed air from the engines was used to de-ice the wings’ and tail surfaces’ leading edges and the engines’ air intakes, so that the aircraft could operate even in harsh climatic conditions.
Radar and fire control system for the J31 were created and produced by Ericsson and called “Gryning” (= Dawn). The system was quite advanced for the time even though complex: a combination of three different radars, each performing separate functions. The system comprised a search radar, a tracking radar, both located in the nose under a huge mutual radome, and a tail warning radar with a separate, smaller antenna. The search radar covered the front hemisphere and could detect aircraft at distances up to 35 kilometres (about 20 miles) away while the tracking radar could achieve a weapons lock up to 4 km (2.5 miles) away. Additionally, the Gryning system had a limited look-down capability, being able to detect aircraft that flew underneath the J31 at an altitude of down to 800 m (2.600 ft). The tail-mounted surveillance radar was effective up to 15 km (almost 10 miles) away. The complexity of this vacuum tube-based radar system, produced before the advent of semiconductor electronics, required a lot of internal space and intensive maintenance to keep it operating properly – and it would have been much too big or heavy to fit into the more modern but also more slender Saab 32 airframe.
The armament was changed, too. While the B31 bomber was intended to carry no guns at all the fighter derivative was now armed with four 20 mm cannon in the lower nose, plus two retractable unguided air-to-air missile racks in the former bomb bay in tandem, carrying a total of 96 projectiles, which were supposed to be fired singly, short bursts or in one or more massive salvoes against bomber formations, covering a huge field of fire and ensuring a takedown even with a single hit. This core armament was complemented by a pair of underwing hardpoints outside of the engine nacelles which could carry pods with further 18 unguided missiles each, iron bombs of up to 500 kg calibre for a secondary attack capability, or 570 l drop tanks to extend the J31’s range and loiter time.
An initial order for three prototypes was placed by the Swedish government, and on 16 October 1950, the first J31, even though still lacking the radar, conducted its maiden flight. The flight test program proceeded relatively smoothly, but the performance was rather poor for a fighter. More powerful engines were required, but choices for Saab were very limited. The use of the Saab 29’s indigenous afterburner variant of the Ghost (which was by then license-produced in Sweden as the Svenska Flygmotor RM2) was deemed inefficient for the large aircraft, so that attempts were made to improve the Ghost’s dry thrust for the J31 without an increased fuel consumption through reheat. This new indigenous engine variant became the RM2F (“förstärkt” = “powered-up”), which provided 5,400 lbf (24.02 kN) of thrust with water-alcohol injection instead of the RM2’s original dry 5,000 lbf (22 kN) maximum thrust. The tank for the required water-alcohol mixture was carried in the rear half of the former bomb bay and replaced one of the unguided missile racks. These were hardly ever used operationally, though, and soon completely removed, replaced by a second water-alcohol tank, which gave the aircraft enough endurance of 30 minutes at the increased thrust output level.
A follow-on order for six pre-production aircraft was soon received, which were still equipped with the weaker original RM2 and designated J31A. These machines were delivered to F 1 Västmanland Flygflottilj at Hässlö air base in Central Sweden, which just had been converted from a bomber to a night fighter unit, having been equipped with the J 30 Mosquitos. There the J31 was evaluated against the J30 until early 1951 and deemed superior in almost every aspect. With these satisfactory results, a full production order for 54 more aircraft was placed in mid-1951. These machines were now outfitted with more powerful RM2F engines and other refinements and designated J31B. This became the type’s operational main variant. All were delivered to F 1 where they were exclusively operated and gradually replaced the J 30s. In service the J31 received the unofficial nickname “Val” (= Whale), due to its bulky yet streamlined shape, but it was officially never adopted.
During regular maintenance in the following two years, the six early J31As received the stronger RM2F, together with the second water-alcohol tank as well as some avionics updates and were accordingly re-designated J31Bs. Further updates included wipers for the windscreen (a serious issue esp. at slow speed and while taxiing) and two smaller brake parachutes instead of the single large original one.
All J31s were delivered in a natural metal finish and retained it throughout their career; only two machines ever received camouflage during trials, but this measure was deemed unnecessary for the aircraft due to their role. Some aircraft of F 1’s 3rd squadron and operated by the unit’s staff flight had the aircrafts’ fins painted in dark green, though, to improve the contrast to the tactical code letters’ colour, yellow or white, respectively. The J31s’ radomes were made from fiberglass and originally tinted in opaque black. During maintenance and after damage, however, some machines received newly produced replacement fairings which were untinted/semi-transparent.
The only major update the J31B received was rolled out starting in 1958, when the IR-guided Rb24 (AIM-9B Sidewinder AAM) was introduced in the Swedish Air Force. Together with the J29 Tunnan fighters the J31s were outfitted to carry launch rails on the wing hardpoints – even though only a single pair could be carried in total. This, however, markedly improved the type’s combat efficiency, and it would take until the Saab 35F in 1965 with its Rb27/28 Falcon missiles to introduce more capable guided anti-aircraft missiles. Since the Rb24s extended the J31’s weapon range considerably, a potential gun upgrade with 30 mm cannons was not executed and Saab’s resources rather allocated into the Saab 32’s development.
Even though the J31B was a capable night and all-weather fighter for its time, it was limited due to its outdated weaponry and quickly superseded by advancing radar, engine and aerodynamic technologies. It did its job but lacked development and performance potential – and it was a large and complicated aircraft that required lots of maintenance. However, the J31 turned out to be a very stable and robust weapon platform, and it was quite popular among the crews because of the spacious cockpit, even though the field of view on the ground was very limited, due to the tall landing gear front leg, and several J31s were involved in taxiing accidents. Due to its twin engines and radar intercept operator, pilots gained more confidence on long missions in the remote northern areas of. Sweden, esp. on mission over open water.
When the Saab 32’s fighter version, the J 32B, eventually became operational in 1958, it was clear that the heavy and highly limited twin-engine J31B would not remain in service for much longer. By 1963 all machines had been retired from frontline service, initially stored in reserve but scrapped by 1970. Two machines remained operational, though: as flying test beds for the Swedish Air Force’s Försökscentralen (FC) at Malmen AB, where they served until 1981 – primarily to test radar and missile guidance systems, and as radar targets for war games and anti-aircraft unit trainings.
General characteristics:
Crew: 2
Length: 15,76 m (51 ft 7 1/2 in)
Wingspan: 16.96 m (55 ft 2/3 in)
Height: 4,21 m (13 ft 9 1/2 in)
Wing area: 45 m2 (480 sq ft)
Empty weight: 9,000 kg (19,823 lb)
Gross weight: 17,500 kg (38,546 lb)
….Max takeoff weight: 19,000 kg (41,850 lb)
Fuel capacity: 5,100 L (1,350 US gal / 1,120 imp gal) maximum internal fuel
plus 2x 570 L (150 US gal, 120 imp gal) optional drop-tanks
Powerplant:
2× Svenska Flygmotor RM2F centrifugal-flow turbojet engine (Rolls Royce Ghost), each with
4,750 lbf (21.1 kN) dry thrust at 10,250 rpm and
5,400 lbf (24.02 kN) with temporary water-alcohol injection
Performance:
Maximum speed: 1,090 km/h (677 mph, 588 kn; Mach 0.9) at 10,000 ft (3,000 m)
Cruise speed: 732 km/h (455 mph, 395 kn)
Stall speed: 150 km/h (92.8 mph, 80.6 kn) with approach power
Combat range: 1.850 km (1,145 mi, 995 nmi) on internals
Ferry range: 2.200 km (1,375 mi, 1,195 nmi) with 2× 570 l drop-tanks
Service ceiling: 16,200 m (53,062 ft)
Rate of climb: 40 m/s (7.681 ft/min)
Wing loading: 87.1 lb/sq ft (388 kg/m²)
Thrust/weight: 0.32
Armament:
4× 20 mm (0.79 in) akan m/47C (license produced Hispano Mark V) autocannon with 220 RPG
48× 75 mm (3.0 in) srak m/55 (Bofors 75 mm (3.0 in) rocket "Frida") unguided air-to-air missiles
with contact fuze high-capacity warhead on retractable rack in ventral bay
(not used operationally, later completely deleted in favor of a second water-alcohol tank)
2× wet underwing hardpoints outside of the engine nacelles for 600 kg (1.321 lb) each;
alternatively a pair of Rb24 (AIM9-B Sidewinder) IR-guided air-to-air missiles
The model and its assembly:
While it does not look spectacular, the J31 (actually my second use of this designation for a Swedish Fifties all-weather fighter, the first was an A.W. Meteor NF.14, but the “31” was lent from the Spitfire PR.XIX in Swedish service as S31) was a major creation feat. It all started with a discussion with fellow Swedish board member Pellson at whatifmodellers.com about Saab prototypes, esp. the early designs. That made me wonder about a twin-jet engine aircraft, something that could replace the Saab 18 bombers much like the BAC Canberra with the RAF’s Mosquito – and looking at similar international projects of the time like the Soviet Il-29 and Yak-25 as well as the French S.O. 4050 Vautour I thought that something similar could work well for Sweden, too.
My concept started with a primary light bomber and attack role, much like the B18 and the Canberra, with the outlook to develop a radar-bearing all-weather fighter from it, which was direly needed in Sweden in the Mid-Fifties and led to the procurement of two interim types in real life, the J30 (Mosquito night fighter) and the J33 (Venom night fighter), while plans were made to equip the J29 with a radar and the Saab 32 already on the drawing boards, even though the latter’s fighter version would be delayed well into the Sixties.
The core of the build was a leftover fuselage from a Matchbox F3D Skyknight – from an incomplete kit that came OOB with one of its three sprue trees double (even though in different colours!). The canopy was also still there, and now I eventually found a good use for it. However, not much more would be taken over from the Skyknight, because the overall layout would be much different, dictated by the bulky centrifugal flow engines that were (only) available to Sweden in the late Forties and which also powered the successful J29 Tunnan. The engines could, due to their diameter and the need for ducts, not be buried in the fuselage, so that they would go under the wings, directly attached to them as in the Il-29 and Vautour. The wings would be slightly swept (around 20°), as a compromise between modernism (as on the J29) and good range/endurance, and shoulder-mounted for good ground clearance and to avoid FOP (an issue of the Yak-25).
Since the engine pods should not be too large and bulky I decided that the main wheels would not retract into them (à la Il-28) and rather follow the Vautour route: with a tandem arrangement retracting into the fuselage and with small outrigger wheels. This had, for the original bomber version, the benefit, that the internal bomb bay could become longer than with a more conventional tricycle landing gear arrangement that would full retract into the hull, much like the Douglas A3D/B.66, with a wider track. And it would look more exotic, too.
With this concept I started a donor parts safari and started work on the fuselage. First major feat was to clean the F3D’s flanks from its original engine fairings – thankfully the Matchbox kit provides them as separate parts, so omitting them was simple, but there were enough major recesses and areas beyond the F3D’s basically teardrop shape hull that had to be filled and PSRed, including the original wing attachment points in the hull’s middle.
Another issue was the cockpit, which was missing through the double sprues. I was lucky to find an original Matchbox F3D tub in the spare box, from my first Skyknight build ever in the late Eighties (then built as a Vietnam era EF-10). New seats were procured as well as two (ugly) pilot figures and a dashboard from an Italeri Tornado IDS. However, the cockpit would later cause some more trouble…
The nose was generously filled with steel balls to keep it down (you never know…), and once the hull was closed, I implanted a new rear landing gear well. In the meantime, I kept searching for engine nacelle and wing parts – both turned out to be challenging. Not that I had not enough material to choose from, but I wanted to make the parts to be as authentic as possible – the nacelles conveying a centrifugal engine inside (see the Gloster Meteor for reference), and the light wing sweep angle as well as the desire for a not-too-modern look made the wing choice really hard.
The nacelles were completed first. I remembered some leftover parts from a Matchbox Meteor night fighter, mainly the intakes, which would be perfect. But the rest of the nacelles took a while to materialize. Eventually I found engine pods from a Hobbycraft Su-25, which are separate pieces. They had a more or less square diameter shape, but their size was good and so I combined them with the round (and bigger!) Meteor NF.14 intakes, after having added trimmed-down intake cones from a Trumpeter Il-28 inside, and PSRing the different shapes into something …more natural. Even though outrigger wheels would later be added I omitted eventual wells at this point, because I had to define the stance through the tandem main wheels first, and this was still tbd.
The wing donors became a lengthy affair. At one point I became so desperate that I tried to use the wing tips from a VEB Plasticart 1:100 Tu-20/95 bomber, but that failed (thankfully!) because the parts turned out to be warped and simply too ugly for the build. I did not find any suitable material in The Stash™, tested wings from an A-6 and an F-14, nothing worked well. I eventually procured – in a forlorn move – a vintage Revell 1:113 B-47 kit. Horrible thing, but its outer wings were useful, even though they required massive modifications. Their roots were cut away to reduce span and their angle was set at about 20°; the slender tips were also cut off, resulting in an almost trapezoid shape with a slightly extended wing chord at the trailing edge of the roots. Lots of PSR was required to improve the surface and to fill some gaps from the OOB engine pod attachment points of the B-47. Ugh.
At that point I had also already found a good fin: from an Academy/Minicraft 1:144 B-1B bomber! This not only offered a very Fifties-esque round and swept shape, it also had suitable attachment points for the stabilizers for a cruciform tail, which appeared necessary due to the engines’ wing position. As a side benefit, I could use the B-47’s wing tips as stabilizers, even though they had to be PSRed a lot, too.
To attach the new wings to the F3D fuselage I made cutouts at shoulder height, but the engine pods were first mounted and PSRed under the wings. More putty and sanding mess, but it was worthwhile.
In the meantime I worked on the landing gear and used parts from the ugly VEB Plasticart Tu-20/95 to scratch a tandem layout with twin wheels and a significant nose-up stance (due to the rear wheels’ position beyond the aircraft’s centre of gravity). Once this was settled and the wings in place I could work on the outrigger wheels. These were procured from a Matchbox 1:72 Sea Harrier and mounted in scratched fairings under the engine pods, so that they could semi-retract. With the ground clearance defined by the main wheels a suitable position and length for the outriggers could be found, and in the end the J31 has a proper stance with all four legs on the ground.
Painting and markings:
I like to apply simple liveries to weird builds, and for the J31 I settled upon a NMF finish – which was typical for the contemporary J29 Tunnan fighters, too. Only the reconnaissance versions as well as the fighters of as single operational unit were ever camouflaged (in dark green and dark blue). The only other realistic cammo option would have been the standard Swedish uniform dark green over blue grey. But bare metal appeared IMHO much better suited.
As a non-standard measure the model received an overall thin coat of grey primer, primarily to identify dents and notches on its many PSRed surface areas – a good move, because a lot of small flaws could be identified and treated before a final overall coat with “White Aluminium” from a rattle can (Duplicolor, RAL 9006) was applied and details like the radome, antennae (both in black) and the landing gear and its wells (in a light bronze tone, seen on Saab 29s and 32s) were painted in detail. I think the silver underlines the J31’s clean lines well?
The model received a light black ink washing, less for true weathering but to emphasize engraved details and for a “cloudier” look of the NMF surfaces. This was further enhanced through a careful treatment with grinded graphite (which adds a truly metallic shine to the paint), and since a lot of surface details were lost through PSR I did some manual panel-shading with different silver tones and re-created panel lines all over the hull with a soft pencil, mostly free-handedly. Quite simple, but it improves the overall impression a lot.
Decals were puzzled together. The Swedish roundels came from a generic TL-Modellbau sheet, the “T” on the tail was scratched from generic white and blue stripes from the same manufacturer. The blue band around the nose was made with the same material, plus a white “T” – inspired by tactical markings from some J29s from the Fifties. Some stencils were collected from the scrap box, and black walkway borders added to the wings’ upper surfaces and the spine behind the cockpit. As a side benefit these hide some lingering inconsistencies on the wing surfaces well.
Finally, the model was sealed with semi-gloss acrylic varnish (Italeri) for a shiny finish, except for the radomes, which became matt.
It might not look spectacular or exciting, but I am quite proud of this “second” J31, because it not only was a major kitbashing project, it also conveys the Fifties “look and feel” I wanted to catch, like its contemporaries S.O. 4050 Vautour, Yak-25, or even the stillborn Baade Ba-152 airliner. From that point it turned out very well, and going for a simple NMF livery was IMHO also a good move – the J31 has a certain “space age” look? At least, this is what you can get when you combine major parts from F3D, B-47. B1, Il-28, Su-25, Tu-95 and a Gloster Meteor… 😉
This is the front and back of a 5.5x8.5 postcard that will be given to people who come to this church's foodbank. It's pretty straight forward layout. The image is in keeping with other pieces we've done, the color is from their palette.
I'm specifically open to handwriting font suggestions. Smudgger is my fallback. Have one you think would look better? I'm also not sure I like the logo block being stark white. I tried screens of other colors in their palette and wasn't thrilled with any. Does it stick out to you?
The line around the back is just for the benefit of Flickr, since its background and the card's background are both white.
I was hoping to get a good shot from this bridge of the Vancouver skyline in the distance, but it turned out so tiny that it no longer seemed worthwhile. As a fallback, the view itself remained but the focus became the sunset across the Skytrain tracks.
On a warm afternoon in the heart of Brooklyn, distress calls flood the airwaves of a madman in full body armor terrorizing the streets. As NYPD clears the area of civilians, strategically placed bombs bring local government buildings crumbling to the ground. The NYPD special task force has arrived on the scene to find the assailant has placed a bio-weapon in one of the devastated buildings. Realizing the situation is beyond their ability – the commander decides to fallback and contacts the Commissioner…
…after receiving the SITREP by Task Force Commander Higgins; and appropriately grilling his team for their incompetence, the Commissioner calls in a personal favor to one of his poker buddies — a 3-Star general over at the Pentagon.
In less than an hour, COBALT Team arrives on the scene with their orders in-hand:DISARM AND DETAIN.
The following narration is a first-person perspective of that mission...cont' at bit.ly/1iwBymq
I have been playing with my figure collection, some recent Brick Forge purchases and my usual fallback "theme" of Spaceville that I play around with whenever I am bored.
Hope you enjoy these figures.
A standing-room-only crowd recently attended a Writers Read event, celebrating the College’s 50-year anniversary with featured authors, activists and former COD students Eboo Patel and Leigh Stein reading and discussing their work.
(Press Photography Network/ Special to College of DuPage)
When people have asked me about doing a 365, my answer usually involves me saying, "and I always keep a bunch of flowers in the house, so if all else fails, I can do a flower shot at ten to midnight."
So on Monday, I really couldn't be bothered with playing "hunt the photo" so went to the *cough* fallback vase of flowers... and thought, "oh".
Oh well. Never mind, eh?
Lots of fog early, but it lead to a beautiful day with temps in the mid-70'sF.
Life back to "normal", it was breakfast/brunch at Jackson Street Tavern. The weekly special wasn;t too appealing to me so I got my fallback, the Louisianna Omelet, loaded with crab meat. Eric got the Chicken Fried Steak special.
The rest of the day...nice and laid back. Monday is supposed to be equally beautiful, before temps fall mid-week. Western Nebraska may see snow, but here, just rain.