Dassault Aviation has secured another contract for Rafale aircraft, which makes up France’s fifth tranche, to be produced over the next ten years.
at the end of December 2023, the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA) awarded Dassault Aviation an order for 42 Rafale combat aircraft, according to a company statement on 12 January 2024.
This order – known as “tranche five” – is the fifth contract the French Government has made to acquire the platform from the original equipment manufacturer, Dassault Aviation.
To date, the country has received 13 Rafales in 1993; 48 in 1999; 59 in 2004; 60 in 2009; and 42 in 2023. In 2021, France placed a special order for 12 Rafales to replace the 12 aircraft transferred to Greece. French orders therefore total 234 Rafale aircraft.
The fighter jet first entered service in the French Navy in 2004 and subsequently the Air Force in 2006. Since then, the jet has proven its capability in Afghanistan, Libya, Mali, Iraq and Syria.
Rafale is an “omni-role” twin-jet combat aircraft that can carry out a wide range of short and long-range missions in the same sortie, unlike traditional multi-role aircraft. It can be used to perform ground and sea attacks, reconnaissance, high-accuracy strikes and nuclear strike deterrence.
It can carry payloads of more than nine tonnes on 14 hardpoints for the airforce version, with 13 for the naval version. The range of weapons includes: Mica, Magic, Sidewinder, ASRAAM and AMRAAM; Apache, AS30L, ALARM, HARM, Maverick and PGM100 air-to-ground missiles and Exocet / AM39, Penguin 3 and Harpoon anti-ship missiles.
