A Rafale fighter carrying the ASMPA missile under its fuselage | French Ministry of Defence
Posted on 02/05/2019 9:05:17 PM PST by sukhoi-30mki
The French Air Force announced on Tuesday that it had conducted the test launch of a nuclear-capable missile from a Rafale fighter.
An ASMPA cruise missile, which is the French military's main nuclear strike weapon for aircraft, was reportedly used by the Rafale. According to the French Air Force, the nuclear strike mission lasted 11 hours and included aerial refuelling of the Rafale.
"These real strikes are scheduled in the life of the weapon's system," French Air Force spokesman Colonel Cyrille Duvivier said. "They are carried out at fairly regular intervals, but remain rare because the real missile, without its warhead, is fired."
The French Air Force declined to say when the test was carried out, but the simulation comes days after the US and Russia ended their adherence to the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which prohibited both sides from deploying missiles with ranges in between 500km and 5,500km. Speaking at a conference in Portugal on Tuesday, French Defence Minister Florence Parly said, “We Europeans cannot remain spectators of our own security.”
France spends approximately $4 billion annually to maintain its arsenal of around 300 nuclear weapons, deployed via submarine-launched ballistic missiles and aircraft-launch missiles. The ASMPA is a supersonic missile with range in excess of 300km. The ASMPA gives aircraft like the Rafale 'standoff' capability in the nuclear strike role, allowing them to stay clear of enemy air defences unlike conventional bombs, which require aircraft to approach their targets closely.
(Excerpt) Read more at theweek.in ...
A Rafale fighter carrying the ASMPA missile under its fuselage | French Ministry of Defence
They do have a country to defend, after all.
Operational range
300 km (500+km for ASMP-A version)
Speed
up to Mach 3
Warhead
TN 81 nuclear warhead, 100 kt to 300 kt of TNT (variable yield)
Hopefully the French follow South Africa’s lead and voluntarily give up their nukes before transitioning to Third World rule, in about a decade.
Gee! I wonder who got the French thinking about that?
Could it be that guy who named a tower in NYC after himself!? :)
MAGA!
About time they started taking care of themselves, other than waiting for America to step in.
They did well for a long time on their own, past time to act like who the French are.
Where's your "sarcasm" tag - or are you speaking of pre-1871 France?
Regards,
“Gee! I wonder who got the French thinking about that?”
The Germans are looking to buy nuclear-capable strike aircraft. The Eurofighter Typhoon and the F-18F are in the running. When it was reported that nuclear-capability was the key requirement it made sense why the F-35A was dismissed from the running. That only left the question as to why the Rafael was not being considered. Well, it looks like the French just woke up. The French never miss an opportunity at a foreign arms sale.
The Tornadoes currently operated by the Germans are nuclear capable.
Yes
But worn out according to reports.
Thanks! I was half joking but I appreciate the serious response and it makes good sense.
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