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DESIGNED FOR ALL MISSIONS FROM DAY ONE
The Rafale has been designed from the onset of the programme to replace all types of aircraft in service with the French forces and to take over all their roles:
air policing and defensive counter air,
air-to-ground and air-to-sea attack,
nuclear deterrence,
air reconnaissance.
The Rafale is slated to become the sole type of combat aircraft operated by the French Air Force and the French Navy.
The rafale is a true omnirole fighter: its multirole capability is significantly enhanced thanks to the simultaneous management of all the missions by the aircraft navigation and weapon system, together with the pilot's multirole ability henceforth acting as a "battle manager".
When the RAFALE programme was launched, the French Air Force and French Navy published a joint requirement for an omnirole aircraft that would have to replace the seven types of combat aircraft then in operation.
The new aircraft would have to be able to carry out a very wide range of missions:
- Air-defence / air-superiority,
- Reconnaissance,
- Close air support,
- Air-to-ground precision strike / interdiction,
- Anti-ship attacks,
- Nuclear strikes.
These requirements were taken into account from the start of the RAFALE's development, leading engineers to invent an aircraft which goes beyond the needs of each type of mission.
Rafale Datasheet: http://www.airrecognition.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=118
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