Both can be exact since both don't say how this range is counted (distance, surface, volume, number of plot you can deal with ?) and on what object the mesure is done.
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Dassault Rafale - Updates and Discussion
- Thread starter Domobran7
- Start date
Elaborate.
French radar is govern by the same radar equation that govern American or Chinese radars.
By the same physics perhaps ou perhaps not. For example the RBE2 cooling system is known to be very effective. By the same equation ... well. Depends of the knowledge they have of their own device.
Bruh, standard radar equation is same everywhere. Unless french radar is in a alternate universe where radio wave behave differently, it is govern by the same formula.
Uhm ... the formulas were the same at the time of dinos but they had no clue of them.
More seriously, have you heared of simulations ? Do you understand why we need simulations if standard radar equation were sufficient to have a good radar ?
Sticking an AESA antenna on it is one thing, the backend modes and intelligence where it matters, is still 80's tech
It won't get GaN radar and a capable backend till the new Radar, next decade
It won't get GaN radar and a capable backend till the new Radar, next decade
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I never said, standard radar equation is sufficient to have a good radar.
It is a response to your comment.
Physics and radar equation is indifferent to the origins of the device. That's all I said.
Size is one thing, quality of T/R module another, quality of the backend signal treatment also another.
Do you really imagine that the RBE2 back end is the same since 1999 and F1 standard ???
Same for EMTI compute units : they evolved every 18 months, with new electronic cards....
There is a delay between end of production and formal delivery. Is it the answer ?
J16 is a copy and paste of Su30 (or something in the Su27 familly), isn't it? So well known.
August 24, 2026
On June 1, 2026, a Rafale successfully conducted a test firing of the MICA NG missile in a supersonic configuration without emitting any radar waves, as confirmed by the French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA). This trial marks a strategic milestone for the French Air and Space Force's passive detection program. It is the second development firing of the weapon—manufactured by MBDA—taking place eleven months after an initial test conducted on June 19, 2025, using a testbed aircraft.
The Ministry of the Armed Forces and the specialized publication *Aviation Week* have hailed this advancement, although no date for entry into operational service has yet been specified. The system relies on combining the MICA NG missile—equipped with a dual-pulse motor and dual seekers—with the capabilities of the Front Sector Optronics (OSF) system. This capability was reintroduced on the Rafale F4.2 standard, which was certified by the DGA in October 2025. Integrating the IRST (Infrared Search and Track) channel allows for the detection of targets and the guidance of strikes based solely on the thermal signature of adversary aircraft.
This technology exploits the structural heating caused by air friction on the airframe of high-speed aircraft. At altitude, thermal sensors detect the infrared energy emitted by the enemy aircraft's surfaces against the cold atmospheric background, without triggering the target's radar warning receiver.
Dassault Aviation is continuing the development of this "silent killer" chain—dubbed "Silent Killer"—intended for the future Rafale F5 standard. Industrial partners Thales and Safran have been collaborating on this passive thermal tracking system for a decade. At the same time, the vulnerability of stealth aircraft to infrared systems was demonstrated during an incident over Iran on the night of March 19, 2026, in which a U.S. F-35A fighter sustained combat damage before making an emergency landing. Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), confirmed the emergency landing and the military nature of the damage, while Iranian authorities claimed the use of an infrared defense system. /END
Rafale fires MICA NG missile without activating radar
On June 1, 2026, a Rafale successfully conducted a test firing of the MICA NG missile in a supersonic configuration without emitting any radar waves, as confirmed by the French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA). This trial marks a strategic milestone for the French Air and Space Force's passive detection program. It is the second development firing of the weapon—manufactured by MBDA—taking place eleven months after an initial test conducted on June 19, 2025, using a testbed aircraft.
The Ministry of the Armed Forces and the specialized publication *Aviation Week* have hailed this advancement, although no date for entry into operational service has yet been specified. The system relies on combining the MICA NG missile—equipped with a dual-pulse motor and dual seekers—with the capabilities of the Front Sector Optronics (OSF) system. This capability was reintroduced on the Rafale F4.2 standard, which was certified by the DGA in October 2025. Integrating the IRST (Infrared Search and Track) channel allows for the detection of targets and the guidance of strikes based solely on the thermal signature of adversary aircraft.
This technology exploits the structural heating caused by air friction on the airframe of high-speed aircraft. At altitude, thermal sensors detect the infrared energy emitted by the enemy aircraft's surfaces against the cold atmospheric background, without triggering the target's radar warning receiver.
Dassault Aviation is continuing the development of this "silent killer" chain—dubbed "Silent Killer"—intended for the future Rafale F5 standard. Industrial partners Thales and Safran have been collaborating on this passive thermal tracking system for a decade. At the same time, the vulnerability of stealth aircraft to infrared systems was demonstrated during an incident over Iran on the night of March 19, 2026, in which a U.S. F-35A fighter sustained combat damage before making an emergency landing. Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), confirmed the emergency landing and the military nature of the damage, while Iranian authorities claimed the use of an infrared defense system. /END