- The Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) has received the two two-seater Rafale “B364″ And “B363” at the Dassault Aviation site in Mérignac. They respectively joined Mont-de-Marsan on February 28 and March 13, where they will be upgraded to the F4.1 standard.
- First Rafale delivered in 2024, the “B364″ and the “B363” are the 13th and 14th copies of a lot of 40devices(tranche 4T2), all of which will be delivered by the end of 2025. 13 additional Rafale deliveries are planned for 2024.
- At the end of 2023, an order for the 5th production tranche of the Rafale program was notified to the companies Dassault Aviation, Thales, Safran and MBDA. This includes the production of 42single-seat aircraft, for the benefit of the Air and Space Force, the first deliveries of which will begin in 2027.
The Rafale combat aircraft is an armament program of the Ministry of the Armed Forces, led by the DGA, for the benefit of the Air and Space Force and the French Navy. Under the project management of the DGA, the aircraft is modernized by successive standards with the aim of maintaining its technological and operational excellence, adapting it to the changing needs of the armed forces and new threats.
The two-seat Rafale “B364” and “B363” are part of a batch of 40 aircraft, which includes 28 Rafale from tranche 4 and the 12 aircraft ordered in 2021 to replace those sold second-hand to Greece. These Rafales are all intended for the Air and Space Force with the exception of the last one, which will be transformed into a test bench aircraft for the benefit of development trials.
Received at the F3R standard, the Rafales were transported to Mont-de-Marsan for their software transformation and their transition to the F4 standard.
The F4.1 standard, the first brick of the F4 standard qualified by the DGA in March 2023, marks an important step in the era of collaborative air combat. It brings major capability developments: integration of the Scorpion 1 helmet sight, improvements to fire control for the use of the Meteor missile (missile managed by an aircraft other than the firing aircraft), evolution of passive threat detection algorithms , as well as increased data exchange capabilities between Rafale.
The F4.1 standard also allows you to benefit from the integration of 1,000 kg AASM weaponry with GPS/laser guidance, greater protection against cyber threats, new functions for the Talios, OSF and RBE2 sensors, and first developments in the field of connectivity.
All Rafales of the Air and Space Force will gradually be retrofitted to the F4 standard.
The industrial architecture of the program is entrusted to Dassault Aviation. The airframe is produced by Dassault Aviation, the engines by Snecma (Safran group), the radar by Thales, the companies Sagem (Safran group) and MBDA are also involved in the Rafale program.
Since 1993, 234 Rafales have been ordered by the DGA from the Rafale economic interest group (made up of the companies Dassault Aviation, Safran and Thales), including 166 delivered to date.
The Rafale program contributes to more than 7,000 direct and indirect jobs in France. More than 400 companies are involved, with numerous industrial sites located throughout France (Argenteuil, Argonay, Biarritz, Bourges, Brest, Brive, Cholet, Corbeil-Essonnes, Élancourt, Étrelles, Gennevilliers, Laval, Martignas-sur-Jalle, Mérignac, Poitiers, Seclin, Vendôme and Villaroche).
