Official: the first batch of French Mirage 2000-5F fighters is already in Ukraine
French Defence Minister Sébastien Lecornu said that the first batch of Mirage 2000-5F fighters is already in Ukraine and ready for combat missions.
Here's What We Know
Earlier France promised to hand over "about ten aircraft", each of which will undergo serious modernisation and will be able to launch not only SCALP-EG/ Storm Shadow missiles, but also JDAM-ER and SDB. As a result, the aircraft will be able to conduct bombing missions from 40 kilometres to the target, which will keep the aircraft and crew away from most enemy air defence field installations.
The post France's defence minister Sebastien Lecornuil. Source: X
Lecornu did not disclose how many Mirage 2000-5Fs the Ukrainian Air Force received, but it was previously thought to be three fighters. In just a few months, Ukrainian pilots have mastered the controls of the Mirage
Importantly, the Mirage will be the first European fighter in the service of the Ukrainian Air Force and the second Western-made model after the American F-16. According to analysts, the Mirage 2000 will be used not so much to defend its airspace, as in the case of the F-16, but to launch precision strikes against the Russian occupiers' facilities.
Flashback
The improved Mirage 2000-5 has the following characteristics:
- maximum speed - 2,336 kilometres per hour;
- combat radius - up to 1,550 kilometres;
- armament - MICA air-to-air missiles, JDAM-ER bombs, SDB, laser-guided missiles;
- radar station - Thales RDY;
- suspension equipment - CLDP containers, possible integration of Damocles for precision strike.
Source: @SebLecornu
