Basic Information

Name

Rafale French Multirole Fighter Aircraft

Designation

—

Alternate Designation

—

Equipment Type

—

Manufacturer

—

Date of Introduction

2001

Description

The Dassault Rafale (French pronunciation: [ʁafal], literally meaning "gust of wind", and "burst of fire" in a more military sense) is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation. Equipped with a wide range of weapons, the Rafale is intended to perform air supremacy, interdiction, aerial reconnaissance, ground support, in-depth strike, anti-ship strike and nuclear deterrence missions. The Rafale is referred to as an "omnirole" aircraft by Dassault. In the late 1970s, the French Air Force and Navy were seeking to replace and consolidate their current fleets of aircraft. In order to reduce development costs and boost prospective sales, France entered into an arrangement with UK, Germany, Italy and Spain to produce an agile multi-purpose fighter, the Eurofighter Typhoon. Subsequent disagreements over workshare and differing requirements led to France's pursuit of its own development programme. Dassault built a technology demonstrator which first flew in July 1986 as part of an eight-year flight-test programme, paving the way for the go-ahead of the project. The Rafale is distinct from other European fighters of its era in that it is almost entirely built by one country, involving most of France's major defence contractors, such as Dassault, Thales and Safran. Many of the aircraft's avionics and features, such as direct voice input, the RBE2 AA active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar and the optronique secteur frontal infra-red search and track (IRST) sensor, were domestically developed and produced for the Rafale programme. Originally scheduled to enter service in 1996, the Rafale suffered significant delays due to post-Cold War budget cuts and changes in priorities. The aircraft is available in three main variants: Rafale C single-seat land-based version, Rafale B twin-seat land-based version, and Rafale M single-seat carrier-based version. Introduced in 2001, the Rafale is being produced for both the French Air Force and for carrier-based operations in the French Navy. The Rafale has been marketed for export to several countries, and was selected for purchase by the Indian Air Force, the Egyptian Air Force, and the Qatar Air Force. The Rafale has been used in combat over Afghanistan, Libya, Mali, Iraq and Syria. Several upgrades to the weapons and avionics of the Rafale are planned to be introduced by 2018. The Rafale was developed as a modern jet fighter with a very high level of agility; Dassault chose to combine a delta wing with active close-coupled canard to maximize manoeuvrability. The aircraft is capable of withstanding from −3.6g to 9g (10.5g on Rafale solo display and a maximum of 11g can be reached in case of emergency. The Rafale is an aerodynamically unstable aircraft and uses digital fly-by-wire flight controls to artificially enforce and maintain stability.[N 2] The aircraft's canards also act to reduce the minimum landing speed to 115 knots (213 km/h; 132 mph); while in flight, airspeeds as low as 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) have been observed during training missions.[64] According to simulations by Dassault, the Rafale has sufficient low speed performance to operate from STOBAR-configured aircraft carriers, and can take off using a ski-jump with no modifications. The Rafale M features a greatly reinforced undercarriage to cope with the additional stresses of naval landings, an arrestor hook, and "jump strut" nosewheel, which only extends during short takeoffs, including catapult launches. It also features a built-in ladder, carrier-based microwave landing system, and the new fin-tip Telemir system for syncing the inertial navigation system to external equipment. Altogether, the naval modifications of the Rafale M increase its weight by 500 kilograms (1,100 lb) compared to other variants. The Rafale M retains about 95 percent commonality with Air Force variants including, although unusual for carrier-based aircraft, being unable to fold its multi-spar wings to reduce storage space. The size constraints were offset by the introduction of Charles de Gaulle, France's first nuclear-powered carrier, which was considerably larger than previous carriers, Foch and Clemenceau.

Variants

Variants Rafale A Technology demonstrator, first flew in 1986. Rafale D Dassault used this designation (D for discrète) in the early 1990s to emphasise the new semi-stealthy design features. Rafale B F3-R Two-seater version for the French Air Force.[39] "It can operate with the Talios targeting pod (45 ordered by French army will delivered between 2019 and 2023)." Rafale C F3-R Same as Rafale B F3-R but Single-seat version for the French Air Force. Rafale M F3-R Same as Rafale C F3-R but Carrier-borne version for the French Naval Aviation, which entered service in 2001. For carrier operations, the M model has a strengthened airframe, longer nose gear leg to provide a more nose-up attitude, larger tailhook between the engines, and a built-in boarding ladder. Consequently, the Rafale M weighs about 500 kg (1,100 lb) more than the Rafale C. It is the only non-US fighter type cleared to operate from the decks of US carriers, using catapults and their arresting gear, as demonstrated in 2008 when six Rafales from Flottille 12F integrated into the USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Air Wing interoperability exercise. Rafale N Originally called the Rafale BM, was a planned missile-only two-seater version for the Aéronavale. Budgetary and technical constraints have been cited as grounds for its cancellation. Rafale R Proposed reconnaissance-oriented variant. Rafale DM Two-seater version for the Egyptian Air Force. Rafale EM Single-seat version for the Egyptian Air Force. Rafale DH Two-seater version for the Indian Air Force. Rafale EH Single-seat version for the Indian Air Force. Rafale B, C, M F4 ( first step 4.1, second step 4.2) It will upgrade radar (F4.1), as well as improved capabilities in the Helmet-Mounted Display and AASM 1000 kg, OSF (long range optoelectronics system) will be receive an IRST( Infrared Search and Track ) for detecting and identifying airborne stealth targets at long range (F4.1), it will be more effective in network-centric warfare, more data exchange and satellite communication and will launch small (F4.2) . It as be ordered in 2019.:All 180 French Rafale B,C,M will be upgraded to F4.1 in 2022 and F4.2 in 2027, moreover a further 30 aircraft at the full F4 standard (F4.2) will be ordered in 2023 and delivered between 2027 and 2030.

System

Alternative Designations INA

Takeoff Run/Landing Roll (m) 400-1000/450

Max “G” Force (g) +9/-3.6

Ceiling (m) 16,765

Vertical Climb Rate (m/s) 305

Date of Introduction

M 2001

B/C 2006

Crew

M/C 1

B 2

Engines

19, 955 lbs. thrust SNECMA M-88-3 turbofans with afterburner 2

Weight (kg)

Maximum Gross 24,500

Maximum Takeoff 20,000

Speed (km/h)

High-Altitude 2,125

Low-level 1,853

Maximum 2,390

Fuel (liters)

Internal 5,325

External 6,000

Range (km)

Maximum Load 2,110

With Aux Fuel (3 tanks) 3,520

Combat Radius 1,882

Dimensions (m)

Length 115.3

Wingspan 10.9

Height 5.4

Standard Payload (kg)

External 9,500

Hardpoints

Rafale B/C 14

Rafale M 13

Survivability/Countermeasures

Martin-Baker zero/zero ejection seat Yes

Canopy gold coated to reduce radar reflections Yes

ARMAMENT

DEFA 791B 30-mm cannon 1

Weapon & Ammunition Types

30-mm DFEA 791B Cannons (rnds) 300

Other Loading Options

Magic 6

Mica 10

Sidewinder 6

ASRAAM 6

AMRAAM 5

Exocet 4

Penguin 3 4

Harpoon 4

AS30L 4

Apache 3

Alarm 5

Harm 5

Maverick 4

NOTES

Description RAFALE IS A TWIN-JET COMBAT AIRCRAFT CAPABLE OF CARRYING OUT A WIDE RANGE OF SHORT- AND LONG-RANGE MISSIONS INCLUDING GROUND AND SEA ATTACK, AIR DEFENSE AND AIR SUPERIORITY, RECONNAISSANCE, AND HIGH-ACCURACY STRIKE OR NUCLEAR STRIKE DETERRENCE.

Image Sources

Notes https://balkaninsight.com/2021/05/28/croatia-selects-french-fighter-jets-to-upgrade-airforce/; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dassault_Rafale_A_(MAE).JPG; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dassault_Rafale_landing_aboard_USS_Theodore_Roosevelt_(CVN-71)_080719-N-4519D-010.jpg;