Draken International, LLC is an American provider of tactical fighter aircraft for contract air services including military and defense industry customers. The firm is based at the

Lakeland Linder International Airport Lakeland Linder International Airport is a public airport five miles southwest of Lakeland, in Polk County, Florida. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 categorized it as a na ...

Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Located along Interstate 4, I-4 east of Tampa and southwest of Orlando, Florida, Orlando, it is the List of municipalities in Florida, most populous city in Polk County. As of the 2020 ...

and also has operating bases at

Kinston Regional Jetport Kinston Regional Jetport , also known as Stallings Field, is a public airport located three miles (5 km) northwest of the central business district of Kinston, a city in Lenoir County, North Carolina. The airport has a single runway that ...

and

Kelly Field Kelly Field (formerly Kelly Air Force Base) is a Joint-use airport, Joint-Use facility located in San Antonio, Texas. It was originally named after George E. M. Kelly, the first member of the U.S. military killed in the crash of an airplane he ...

in San Antonio, Texas. Draken offers airborne adversary support (Red Air),

Joint Terminal Attack Controller Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) is the term used in the United States Armed Forces and some other military forces for a qualified service member who directs the action of military aircraft engaged in close air support and other offensive ...

(JTAC),

Close Air Support Close air support (CAS) is defined as aerial warfare actions—often air-to-ground actions such as strafes or airstrikes—by military aircraft against hostile targets in close proximity to friendly forces. A form of fire support, CAS requires ...

(CAS), flight training, threat simulation, electronic warfare support,

aerial refueling Aerial refueling ( en-us), or aerial refuelling ( en-gb), also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to an ...

, research, and testing services to the

U.S. Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, t ...

, U.S. defense contractors and aerospace firms, provided by a fleet of former military aircraft.

History

Draken was established by

Jared Isaacman Jared Taylor Isaacman (born February 11, 1983) is an American billionaire entrepreneur, pilot, and commercial astronaut. He is the founder and Executive Chairman of Shift4, Shift4 Payments, a payment processor, and the founder of Draken Internati ...

in January 2012. In 2015, the company was awarded contracts to provide training for the

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia (United States), militia of each U.S. ...

(ANG) at

Volk Field Volk Field Air National Guard Base is a military airport located near the village of Camp Douglas, in Juneau County, Wisconsin, United States., effective 26 January 2023 It is also known as the Volk Field Combat Readiness Training Center (CRT ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, for the

U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

(USMC) Joint Tactical Air Control at

MCAS Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point or MCAS Cherry Point (*) is a United States Marine Corps airfield located in Havelock, North Carolina, United States, in the eastern part of the state. It was built in 1941, and was commissioned in 1942 an ...

, North Carolina, and at the

Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms The Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC), also known as 29 Palms, is the largest United States Marine Corps base. The base covers a total area of 1,102 square miles. It was a census-designated place (CDP) officially known as Twentynin ...

, California, as well as providing “adversary support” at

Nellis Air Force Base Nellis Air Force Base ("Nellis" colloquialism, colloq.) is a United States Air Force military installation, installation in southern Nevada. Nellis hosts Aerial warfare, air combat exercises such as Exercise Red Flag and close air support exerc ...

in Las Vegas, Nevada. It also won a contract with the

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

. In March 2018, Draken announced a $6.7 million expansion of its headquarters and repair infrastructure at

. On 1 June 2018, the Department of Defense announced that the

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...

(USAF) had awarded Draken a $280 million contract to continue providing training services for the

57th Adversary Tactics Group The 57th Adversary Tactics Group (57 ATG) was the flying component of the 57th Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force Air Combat Command. The group was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, prior to being merged with the 57th Operat ...

at Nellis AFB, as well as

Luke AFB Luke Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States., effective 20 December 2007 It is located west of the central business district of Glendale, and west of Phoenix. Luke AFB is a major train ...

in Arizona and

Hill AFB Hill Air Force Base is a major U.S. Air Force (USAF) base located in Davis County, Utah, just south of the city of Ogden, and bordering the Cities of Layton, Clearfield, Riverdale, Roy, and Sunset with its largest border immediately adja ...

in Utah. In November 2018, the ANG awarded Draken a five-year contract to provide red air services to support key combat readiness training exercises throughout the United States. Draken provides JTAC training and CAS for the USMC at MCAS Cherry Point and

MCAS Yuma Marine Corps Air Station Yuma or MCAS Yuma is a United States Marine Corps air station in Arizona. It is the home of multiple squadrons of F-35B Lightning IIs of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 ( ...

, Arizona and

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

's (USN) Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center at

NAS Fallon Naval Air Station Fallon or NAS Fallon is the United States Navy's premier air-to-air and air-to-ground training facility. It is located southeast of the city of Fallon, east of Reno in western Nevada. Since 1996, it has been home to the U.S. N ...

, Nevada. Draken was one of seven companies awarded an IDIQ contract to support the USAF's Combat Air Force Contracted Air Support (CAF CAS) program in October 2019. In 2020, Blackstone bought Draken International. On May 24, 2021, a

Mirage F1 The Dassault Mirage F1 is a French fighter and attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was developed as a successor to the Mirage III family. During the 1960s, Dassault commenced development of what would become t ...

operating in the adversarial role crashed near Nellis AFB. The pilot was killed. Military officials and the

National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and inci ...

launched investigations. In 2021, Draken announced agreements to purchase up to 24

F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superio ...

s from the Netherlands and Norway. However, as of 2024 the sales have been cancelled and the aircraft redirected to Ukraine and Romania.

Fleet

With approximately 150 jets, the company operates the largest fleet of privately owned former military tactical jet aircraft in the world. The company's fleet included: * 13

A-4K Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic carrier-capable light attack aircraft designed and produced by the American aerospace manufacturer Douglas Aircraft Company, and later, McDonnell Douglas. It was originally designated A4D und ...

s *23 L-159E ALCA *21

Dassault Mirage F1 The Dassault Mirage F1 is a French fighter and attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was developed as a successor to the Mirage III family. During the 1960s, Dassault commenced development of what would become t ...

*25 MiG-21bis *12

Atlas Cheetah The Atlas Cheetah is a South African fighter aircraft designed and produced by the aviation company Atlas Aircraft Corporation (later Denel Aeronautics). It was primarily designed and developed to be operated by the South African Air Force (S ...

*15

Dassault Falcon 20 The Dassault Falcon 20 is a French business jet developed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation. The first business jet developed by the firm, it became the first of a family of business jets to be produced under the same name; of these, both t ...

were acquired by the takeover of Cobham Aviation as Draken Europe in 2020 In 2020, to supplement the fleet of former

Spanish Air Force The Spanish Air and Space Force () is the aerial and space warfare branch of the Spanish Armed Forces. History Early stages Hot air balloons have been used with military purposes in Spain as far back as 1896. In 1905, with the help of Al ...

aircraft, Draken imported the first of up to 25 former

Royal Jordanian Air Force The Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF; Arabic: سلاح الجو الملكي الأردني, ''Silāḥ al-Jaww al-Malakī al-ʾUrdunī'') is the aerial warfare branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces. Founded in 1955, the RJAF serves as the primary ...

(RJAF) Mirage F1CJ, DJ and EJ aircraft.

Aircrew

The company's pilots are a combination of

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

and

USMC The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionary ...

tactical jet pilots who are retired from those services or who continue to serve part-time in the reserve components of those services, including the

. Their backgrounds include

USAF Weapons School The USAF Weapons School is a unit of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force, assigned to the 57th Wing and Space Delta 1. It is located at Nellis AFB, Nevada. Mission The mission of the USAF Weapons School is to teach gradu ...

graduates and instructors, U.S. Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) graduates and instructors, USAF aggressor pilots, USN/USMC adversary pilots and Strike Fighter Tactics Instructors (SFTI), USAF

air liaison officer An air liaison officer is generally an air force official acting as an intermediary between the air force they represent and another organization, although this role can vary based on country. United Kingdom In World War II, air liaison officers ...

s, former

USAF Thunderbirds The USAF Air Demonstration Squadron is the air demonstration squadron of the United States Air Force The Thunderbirds, as they are popularly known, are assigned to the 57th Wing, and are based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Created in 1953 ...

demonstration pilots and USAF/USN/USMC

Forward Air Controller Forward air control is the provision of guidance to close air support (CAS) aircraft intended to ensure that their attack hits the intended target and does not injure friendly troops. This task is carried out by a forward air controller (FAC). ...

- Airborne (FAC-A) instructors, with some of the more senior pilots having previously served as commanders (USAF) and commanding officers (USN/USMC) of operational fighter, strike fighter, and Marine fighter attack squadrons, groups and wings while on active duty or in the Reserve Components.

Activities outside the U.S.

Draken International and Secapem, a French manufacturer of towed aerial gunnery banner, have created a joint venture called SDTS utilising a number of A-4N Skyhawk aircraft. In September 2020 Draken International purchased Cobham Aviation Services based in

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

, UK, and renamed it Draken Europe. Draken Europe fly a range of aircraft, with their largest fleet being heavily modified Dassault Falcon 20s, fitted with a range of equipment to provide Operational Readiness Training.

References

External links