The Dassault Rafale is one of the least appreciated fighter jets in the world, and from this video it’s hard to understand why. The video, taken last week at the Zigermeet Air Show in Switzerland, shows a French Air Force Rafale performing detailed aerial acrobatics as well as any other fighter.
The Rafale jet visited the Swiss air show and performed a lengthy aerial display, the highlights of which are in the video. One particular maneuver worth mentioning: at the five minute mark the Rafale performs a high angle of attack maneuver where the aircraft flies horizontally, nose up, at a speed where it almost appears to hover in midair.
The Rafale is the main combat jet of the French armed forces. Developed in the late 1980s by French fighter manufacturer Dassault, the Rafale was designed as a twin-engine, multi-role combat aircraft. Rafale can carry out both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions, including air superiority, reconnaissance, strike, anti-ship and even nuclear delivery missions. A naval version, Rafale M, flies from the French Navy aircraft carriers Charles de Gaulle.
The Rafale is an agile jet, with a delta wing and large canards to enhance maneuverability. The Rafale is powered by two Snecma M88-2 afterburning turbofan engines, producing a total of 33,720 pounds of thrust. A RBE2-AA active electronically scanned array radar gives the French fighter the ability to detect, track and engage multiple targets at extended ranges. The Spectra electronic warfare suite, which includes a laser warning receiver, radar warning receiver, missile warning system, and jammers lets the French pilots know when their aircraft is being targeted and can deploy appropriate countermeasures.
Rafale is one of the most heavily armed fighter jets in the world, with 14 hardpoints for carrying bombs, missiles, rockets, external fuel tanks, and equipment pods. The jet can carry a wide variety of both French and American ordnance, including Mica, Magic, and Sidewinder air to air missiles, Paveway II laser-guided bombs, SCALP cruise missiles, and even the ASMP-A nuclear missile. Internally the jet is equipped with the GIAT 30-millimeter cannon with 125 rounds of ammunition.
But just look at it fly.
Kyle Mizokami is a writer on defense and security issues and has been at Popular Mechanics since 2015. If it involves explosions or projectiles, he's generally in favor of it. Kyle’s articles have appeared at The Daily Beast, U.S. Naval Institute News, The Diplomat, Foreign Policy, Combat Aircraft Monthly, VICE News, and others. He lives in San Francisco.
