Saab 21R

what is it?

The Saab 21R was a Swedish fighter/attack aircraft developed and produced by Svenska Aeroplan AB (SAAB). It was a jet-powered development of the piston-engined SAAB 21 and was the first jet aircraft to be produced by Saab. The R-suffix stands for reaktion (reaction), referencing reaktionsdrift (jet power) or reaktionsmotor (jet engine).

🔎How to recognise it: 1 jet engine · low wing · retractable tricycle gear · 11.4 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 800 km/htop speed
• range 450 kmwithout refuelling
• size 5,615 kgmax take-off weight
• built 64made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 79 years ago, in 1947.
• 🏎️Top speed is 6.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 11.4 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🏔️Can fly 1.4× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).

jet: Gas turbine pushing air out the back (turbofan or turbojet): fast and high-flying.

spec sheet

first flight

1947-03-10

introduced

1949

retired

1957

status

retired

number built

64

role

fighter and attack aircraft

origin

🇸🇪 Sweden

makers

Saab Group

engines

1× de Havilland Goblin II (Svenska Flygmotor RM1) / de Havilland Goblin

crew

1

length

10.6 m

wingspan

11.4 m

height

2.9 m

max take-off weight

5,615 kg

top speed

800 km/h

cruise speed

610 km/h

range

450 km

ceiling

12,000 m

wings

low wing

landing gear

retractable tricycle gear

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.