The Dassault Rafale 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, and nuclear strike missions.

• Role: Multirole fighter aircraft
• National origin: France
• Manufacturer: Dassault Aviation
• First flight: 4 July 1986
• Introduction: 18 May 2001
• Status: In service
• Produced: 1986–present
• Number built: 133 (as of October 2014)

Military operators

• French Air Force 180 have been ordered
• French Navy
• Egyptian Air Force 24 on order

Variants

• Rafale A – Technology demonstrator, first flying in 1986
• Rafale B – Two-seater version for the French Air Force
• Rafale C – Single-seat version for the French Air Force
• Rafale M – Carrier-borne version for the French Naval Aviation

Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: 1–2
• Length: 15.27 m (50.1 ft)
• Wingspan: 10.80 m (35.4 ft)
• Height: 5.34 m (17.5 ft)
• Wing area: 45.7 m² (492 ft²)
• Empty weight:
  • C: 9,500 kilograms (20,900 lb)
  • B: 9,770 kilograms (21,540 lb)
  • M: 10,196 kilograms (22,480 lb)
• Loaded weight: 14,016 kg (30,900 lb)
• Max. takeoff weight: 24,500 kg (C/D), 22,200 kg (M) (54,000 lb)
• Powerplant: 2 × Snecma M88-2 turbofans
  • Dry thrust: 50.04 kN (11,250 lbf) each
  • Thrust with afterburner: 75.62 kN (17,000 lbf) each
• Fuel capacity: 4,700 kg (10,360 lb) internal

Performance

• Maximum speed:
  • High altitude: Mach 1.8 (1,912 km/h, 1,032 knots)
  • Low altitude: Mach 1.1 (1,390 km/h, 750 knots)
• Range: 3,700+ km (2,000+ nmi)  with 3 drop tanks
• Combat radius: 1,852+ km (1,000+ nmi) on penetration mission
• Service ceiling: 15,235 m (50,000 ft)
• Rate of climb: 304.8+ m/s (60,000+ ft/min)
• Wing loading: 306 kg/m² (62.8 lb/ft²)
• Thrust/weight: 0.988 (100% fuel, 2 EM A2A missile, 2 IR A2A missile) version M
• Maximum g-load: +9/–3.6 g

Armament

• Guns: 1× 30 mm (1.18 in) GIAT 30/M791 autocannon with 125 rounds
• Hardpoints: 14 for Air Force versions (Rafale B/C), 13 for Navy version (Rafale M) with a capacity of 9,500 kg (20,900 lb) external fuel and ordnance and provisions to carry combinations of:
  • Missiles:
    • MBDA MICA IR or EM or Magic II and
    • MBDA Meteor air-to-air missiles in the future
  • Air-to-ground:
    • MBDA Apache or
    • Storm Shadow-SCALP EG or
    • AASM-Hammer or
    • GBU-12 Paveway II or GBU-49 Enhanced Paveway II
    • GBU-24 Paveway III
    • AS-30L
  • Air-to-surface:
    • AM 39-Exocet
    • CVS401-Perseus
  • Deterrence:
    • ASMP-A nuclear missile
  • Other:
    • Thales Damocles targeting pod
    • AREOS (Airborne Recce Observation System)reconnaissance pod
    • up to 5 drop tanks
    • Buddy-buddy refuelling pod

Avionics

• Thales RBE2 radar
• Thales SPECTRA electronic warfare system.
• Thales/SAGEM-OSF Optronique Secteur Frontal infra-red search and track system.