Dassault Mirage F1

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Mirage F1
Spanish Air Force Dassault Mirage F1M (modified).jpg
A Spanish Air Force Mirage F1M
Role Fighter aircraft
National origin France
Manufacturer Dassault Aviation
First flight 23 December 1966; 54 years ago
Introduction 1973; 48 years ago
Status Retired from the French Air Force operational service in June 2014. In limited service.
Primary users French Air Force (historical)
Iraqi Air Force (historical)
Hellenic Air Force (historical)
Spanish Air Force (historical)
Produced 1966–1992
Number built 720[1]
Developed from Dassault Mirage III

The Dassault Mirage F1 is a French fighter and attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Dassault Aviation.
It was developed as a successor to the popular Mirage III family.

During the 1960s, Dassault commenced development of what would become the Mirage F1 as a private venture,
alongside the larger Mirage F2. Work on the F1 eventually took precedence over the more costly F2, which was
cancelled during the late 1960s. The French Air Force (Armée de l’Air) took interest in the fledgling fighter to
meet its requirement for an all-weather interceptor aircraft. Accordingly, initial production units were equipped
with the Thomson-CSF Cyrano IV monopulse radar. During the latter half of 1974, the Mirage F1 entered ser-
vice in the French Air Force. Shortly thereafter, the type was deployed as the main interceptor of the French Air
Force, a capacity which it continued to serve in until the arrival of the Mirage 2000. It later transitioned to an
aerial reconnaissance role. During June 2014, the last French Mirage F1s was retired from service.

Powered by a single SNECMA Atar 9K-50 turbojet engine, which provided about 7 tonnes-force (69 kN; 15,000
lbf) of thrust, and armed with an array of French and American-sourced armaments, the Mirage F1 has been
operated as a light multipurpose fighter and has been exported to around a dozen nations. The type has seen
action in a large number of armed conflicts involving several of its operators, including the Western Sahara War,
the Paquisha War, the Cenepa War, the Iran–Iraq War, the Gulf War, the South African Border War, the War in
Afghanistan, the Chadian–Libyan conflict, the 2011 military intervention in Libya, and the Northern Mali con-
flict. More than 720 Mirage F1s were manufactured between 1966 and 1992.[2] It was succeeded in production
by the Dassault Mirage 2000.
Contents

1 Development
2 Design
3 Operational history