Dassault Mirage 2000

Dassault Mirage 2000
Two Mirage 2000Ds in flight
Type:	Multipurpose fighter
Design country:	France
Manufacturer:	Dassault Aviation
First flight:	March 10, 1978
Commissioning:	June 1984
Production time:	1983-2007
Number of pieces:	611

The Mirage 2000 is a French multi- role fighter aircraft that was developed and produced by the aircraft manufacturer Dassault . It is the result of a long line of fighter planes that were designed as delta wing aircraft without a separate elevator .

history

Origins

A Mirage III-E from the RAAF

The tailless delta shape was first used by Dassault in the mid-1950s. The threat at the time was that of the Soviet bombers, which were fast and high-flying. Despite some known disadvantages of the delta wing, it is ideal for high speeds at great heights with its combination of strong sweep and large wing area. Furthermore, the long profile chord at the wing root offered sufficient space for tanks and thus simplified the construction of the aircraft. After all, a high degree of trim was required in all flight situations to achieve static stability, especially when external loads were carried. This wing design increases air resistance at subsonic speeds . With a delta wing, there is no point at which the stall occurs. The higher the angle of attack, the greater the lift, but the aerodynamic drag also increases. The critical point is reached when the air resistance exceeds the thrust of the engine. Then the speed drops rapidly. To counteract this, Dassault initially lowered the nose of the fuselage slightly. At the same time, the angle of incidence was reduced, which, however, reduced the flight altitude. However, this was acceptable in most flight situations. The tailless delta construction was only suitable to a limited extent for combat in curves, because the speed in turns decreases more than with other wing designs. However, since the primary task was fighting Soviet jet bombers, this aspect initially played only a minor role. Overall, it was believed that the advantages outweighed the above and so the Mirage III was first created . This was built according to the principle of the smallest possible cell with the largest possible engine. Israel finally used this type very successfully in the Six Day War against the MiG-21 built in the Soviet Union . The fact that the reason for the Israeli air superiority mainly had something to do with the level of training of the pilots was ignored; the French fighter was now considered battle-tested. This led to massive export successes for the Mirage III.

predecessor

Despite the good reputation of the Mirage III , the French Air Force was fully aware of its disadvantages. To compensate for this, Dassault turned to the design of the machine with conventional swept-back wings and tail units. The Mirage F1 had the same dimensions as its predecessor, but was significantly heavier and had a much smaller wing area. Since all other values ​​remained the same, the significantly larger wing loading should actually have led to an impairment of the minimum speed and maneuverability. However, this disadvantage was more than compensated for by the combination of slats and flaps. They reduced the approach speed by more than 30%, so that shorter runways could be used. In most altitudes, the F1 was able to withstand a load 1 g greater than the Mirage III at many speeds , while significantly less energy was lost on tight turns. It looked like F1 would make the tailless deltas obsolete.

development

When a new generation of fighter aircraft, the F-14 and F-15, entered service in the USA in the early 1970s , Dassault was to develop a twin-engine air superiority fighter. Dassault had no experience with swivel blades, which is why the company abandoned development in this area after the Mirage G prototype . At the same time, however, it also became clear that a twin-jet conventional design with the F-15 corresponding performance would exceed the financial possibilities. That is why Dassault looked for a cheaper alternative, and since the company had the most experience in the field of delta wings, he assumed a successful design. In December 1975 Dassault finally began work on two new tailless delta aircraft, one of which was single-engine and the other twin-engine. The new single-engine fighter first flew on March 10, 1978 as the Mirage 2000. The twin-engine version, however, only flew on March 9, 1979 as the Mirage 4000 . This version should ultimately fail, while the Mirage 2000 was a success with 601 machines built. The last Mirage 2000 (a Mirage 2000-5 Mk.II) for the Greek Air Force was delivered on November 23, 2007 at Tanagra Air Force Base.

technology

The cell

Both in appearance and dimensions, the Mirage 2000 is the same as the Mirage III, but significant changes have been made to the details. The wing leading edge sweep was reduced from 60 ° to 58 °. The wings are equipped with slats that extend over the entire leading edge, while two-part, combined elevators and ailerons - so-called elevons  - are attached to the trailing edge . These elevons are subdivided for redundancy and to reduce bending stress. In combination with the slats, the curvature of the wing can be adapted to the corresponding speed and the flight condition, whereby a significantly better lift-to-drag ratio could be achieved over a wide flight range. The Mirage 2000 is a subsonic aircraft that is aerodynamically unstable about the transverse axis. This leads to a lower loss of speed when turning. In order to enable higher angles of attack, so-called strakes were attached to the top of the air inlets - a little above the wings - which create a stable bag vortex at large angles of attack and thus ensure that the flow does not migrate to the outside and thus the controllability at high angles of attack is clear improve. The construction of the adjustable side air inlets is typical for Dassault, as is the conical inlet body on the air inlet. The cockpit hood is attached to the rear of the fuselage to improve aerodynamics, but this hampers the pilot's view to the rear. In order to reduce the weight of the airframe, Dassault used composite materials based on carbon and boron for the first time, but not yet to the same extent as in more modern fighter jets.

Engine

The Snecma M53 is an afterburner turbofan engine that was developed for the Mirage 2000 by Snecma .

Although it is very similar to the Atar 9C and 9K, the M53 is a completely new development. The M53 is designed as a single-shaft engine ; here the fan and the high-pressure compressor are driven via the same shaft. The bypass ratio is 0.31: 1 within the usual range for jet engines. Due to the single-shaft construction, it was much less maintenance-friendly than a twin-shaft engine, but this came at the cost of an only very moderate compression ratio of 9.8: 1. In comparison, the F-16's F110 engine has a compression ratio of ~ 29.9: 1. The stator is not designed to be variable. Overall, this leads to a significantly higher specific fuel consumption of the M53, but it has a maintenance-friendly modular design. These modules can be exchanged without complex calibration. There are also no engine restrictions whatsoever that the pilot would have to observe, which significantly relieves the pilot in air combat.

Avionics

cockpit

Most of the Mirage 2000 is equipped with the RDI on - board radar from Thomson-CSF . This device is specially designed for intercepting hunting. This radar works with a very high pulse repetition frequency in order to get clear data with regard to target range and speed for targets flying further away. The maximum range given is 120 km when fighting targets the size of a fighter plane. This range is reduced to 56 km for aircraft approaching frontally or low-flying when measuring downwards (look-down). Although this radar did not have the performance of comparable contemporary US radars such as the Hughes APG-65 , the French Air Force believed that it was not least because of the small radar reflective surface of the Mirage 2000 compared to the radar devices the potential opponent was better. It could also be used for targeting guided missiles to very high-flying targets. In the 1990s, Thomson-CSF presented the improved on-board radar RDY, which has a greater range and more performance than its predecessor. It can simultaneously locate up to 24 targets, record eight of them and identify the targets with the greatest threat potential. The RDY-2 is now also available and the Mirage 2000 is partially retrofitted with it. Another special feature of the Mirage 2000 are the infrared warning system SAMIR and the ECM equipment IMEWS.

Flight performance

Like most modern combat aircraft, the Mirage 2000 is designed for loads in the range between −3 g to +9 g . If this load is exceeded, the flight computer intervenes. The final load limit is 13.5 g . The largest roll rate is 270 ° / s and the position of the machine can also be changed very quickly in the longitudinal axis. The turning rate is 20 to 30 degrees per second. Due to the ratio of thrust to weight, the acceleration capacity is relatively low and the minimum curve radius is high. The turning rate at a height of 1524 m is 14 ° / s at Mach 0.5, increases to 17 ° / s at Mach 0.9 and drops to 7 ° / s at Mach 1.2. At 9144 m at a speed of Mach 0.9, the rate of turn is 7 ° / s and drops to 4 ° / s at Mach 1.6. These performance values ​​are very good for a machine designed as an interceptor, but can not keep up with the values ​​of modern machines of the type Eurofighter or Rafale built for cornering combat . The machine remains controllable up to a speed of 74 km / h, although the minimum speed required for stable flight is 185 km / h. As an interceptor, the Mirage 2000 can climb to 15,000 m and  reach Mach 2 within four minutes after take-off .

variants

Mirage 2000C

This first single-seat basic variant had its maiden flight in November 1982. 136 of these were manufactured and delivered. The first 37 had a Thomson CSF RDM radar and a SNECMA M53-5 engine. The later series has already been equipped with the newer Thomson CSF RDI radar and SNECMA M53 P2 engine.

Mirage 2000B

This two-seat variant is primarily used as a trainer. With the second cockpit, she has 110 liters less fuel, but has a 19 cm longer hull. There are also no on-board cannons installed. It had its maiden flight on October 11, 1980. 32 units have been delivered for the French Air Force.

Mirage 2000N

Mirage 2000N, part of the "Ramex Delta" demonstration formation of the Army de l'Air, at the Belgian Air Force Days 2016

Mirage 2000N K1

A special feature within the 2000 series of the Mirage is the 2000N . It was developed for attack missions from the two-seater 2000B trainer version . The 2000N replaced in 1983, the Mirage IV.P in the primary role of nuclear deterrence, hence its name "N" for Nucléaire. Your main task is to low-level flight operations, both with a bandwidth of conventional weapons ( unguided bomb , cluster bombs or bulk bombs ) as well as with tactical nuclear weapons , far penetrate into enemy territory and destroy goals of the highest priority. In this last role, a 2000N carries almost certainly one of the two known airborne nuclear weapons in France, the CEA-AN-52 nuclear bomb , as well as the ASMP cruise missile . It also has the Thomson CSF Antilope 5 radar, which has been optimized for deep attacks, in combination with a HUD, color screens and a moving map. The inertial navigation system Sagem ULISS 52 is also equipped with two TRT-AHV-12 vertical meters for precise navigation. There is also a vertically installed photo camera.

Mirage 2000N K2

This improved sub-variant appeared in 1983 and has the MATRA spiral decoy ejector with 112 cartridges. For self-defense, in addition to RWR, EKF jammers and decoysers ALKAN LL5062, the ICMS system is also installed, which evaluates the sensor data and initiates countermeasures.

Ramex Delta

To demonstrate their capabilities, the Armée de l'Air operates a demonstration team called the Ramex Delta that uses two Mirage 2000Ns to present tactical maneuvers at flight demonstrations. The machines and crews come from the Escadron de chasse 2/4 " La Fayette " from Istres in the south of France .

Mirage 2000D

The Mirage 2000D is a fighter-bomber variant that was derived from the 2000N in 1990 as a carrier of conventional weapons. The name comes from Diversifié. It primarily has the same systems as the 2000N, but not the cabling to fire the ASMP.

Mirage 2000-5

Mirage 2000-5F

This improved version of the 2000C features the more modern Thales RDY radar, glass cockpit and the new MICA guided missiles. Its first flight took place on October 24, 1990. The 2000C of the French Air Force, converted to the standard 2000-5, are called Mirage 2000-5F.

Mirage 2000-5 Mk.II

The Mirage 2000-5 Mark 2 is a further improved multi-purpose version of the 2000-5, which can be used in all weather and day / night. Among other things, it has a Thales RDY-2 radar (SAR capable), improved avionics (new computer, laser gyro, GPS and new ECM equipment). The variant for the UAE is called 2000-9.

Mirage 2000E

Export variants are called Mirage 2000E. They have M53-P2 engines as well as a further developed RDM + radar and are offered with ATLIS-II target containers.

• Mirage 2000M , 16 one and 4 two-seaters for Egypt
• Mirage 2000T / TH , 42 one and 7 two-seaters for India
• Mirage 2000I / TI , Modernized Mirage 2000T / TH of India to the 2000-5 Mark 2 standard
• Mirage 2000P / DP , 10 one and 2 two-seaters for Peru
• Mirage 2000-5EI , 48 one and 12 two-seaters for Taiwan , based on the Mirage 2000-5
• Mirage 2000-5EDA / EDDA , 9 one and 3 two-seater for Qatar , based on the Mirage 2000-5
• Mirage 2000EAD / RAD / DAD , 22 single seaters EAD, 8 single seaters RAD and 6 two seaters for the United Arab Emirates , based on the Mirage 2000-5
• Mirage 2000-9 / 9D , export version based on the Mirage 2000-5 Mk 2, 20 one and 12 two-seaters for the United Arab Emirates
• Mirage 2000EG / BG , 36 one and 4 two-seater for the Greek Air Force (HAF) , based on slightly modified 2000C (additional 15 newly built and 10 machines converted to the Mirage 2000-5 Mark 2)
• Mirage 2000BR , 10 one and 2 two-seater from the inventory of the Armée de l'air for Brazil

Technical specifications

Crack drawing

Mirage 2000 C / B / D / N / 5 in service with the French Air Force

Parameter	Data of the Mirage 2000-5 Mk.II / 9
Type	Multipurpose fighter
crew	1 or 2 for Mirage 2000 B, D and N
length	14.66 m
span	9.13 m
height	5.40 m with empty weight
Wing area	41 m²
Wing extension	2.03
Wing loading	minimum (empty weight): 186 kg / m² nominal (normal take-off weight): 287 kg / m² maximum (maximum take-off weight): 427 kg / m²
Empty weight	7,636 kg
normal takeoff mass	11,761 kg
Max. Takeoff mass	17,500 kg
Max. Fuel capacity	3,200 kg (internal)
minimum speed	185 km / h
Marching speed	1118 km / h or Mach 0.91 (at 10,975 m)
Top speed	2390 km / h or Mach 2.25 (at 10,975 m) 1470 km / h or Mach 1.2 (at sea level)
Service ceiling	18,000 m
Max. Rate of climb	305 m / s
Use radius	approx. 900 km (as an interceptor)
Transfer range	3355 km (with additional tanks)
charges	−3 g to +9 g
Rescue system	Ejection seat Martin-Baker / Hispano-Suiza MB Mk.F10Q
Engines	a SNECMA-M53-P2 - turbofan engine
Thrust	with afterburner: 95.23 kN without afterburner: 64.33 kN
Thrust-to-weight ratio	maximum (empty weight): 1.27 nominal (normal takeoff mass): 0.83 minimum (max.start mass): 0.55
operator	France, Egypt, Brazil, Greece, India, Peru, Qatar, Taiwan and United Arab Emirates

Armament

A French Mirage 2000D on duty in Afghanistan, July 2002

Guns mounted in the fuselage

• 2 × 30 mm revolver cannons DEFA Canon 30 M 550 F4 (M554) with 125 rounds of ammunition each (only single-seater versions Mirage 2000C / -5)

Munitions up to 6300 kg at nine external load stations under the two wings and under the fuselage

Air-to-air guided missile

• 2 × start rails for 1 × Matra R.550 "Magic 2" each - infrared-controlled for short distances
• 2 × start rails for 1 × Matra Super 530 D / F each - radar-controlled for short distances
• 6 × start rails for 1 × MDBA MICA RF each - radar-controlled for medium distances (only Mirage 2000-5)
• 6 × start rails for 1 × MDBA MICA IR each - infrared controlled for medium distances (only Mirage 2000-5)

Air-to-surface guided missile

• 2 × Aérospatiale AS-30L (laser-controlled, 240 kg warhead)
• 2 × Matra "ARMAT" (radar radiation seeking, improved AS-37 Martel)
• 2 × Aérospatiale AM-39 "Exocet" anti-ship missiles
• 6 × Sagem Armament Air-Sol Modulaire (AASM) (GPS / laser or infrared guided missile; 250 kg explosive bomb with rocket propellant and steering unit)

Cruise missiles

• 1 × Aérospatiale Air Sol Moyenne Portée (ASMP) - cruise missile with 300 kt nuclear explosive device (only 2000N)
• 1 × MBDA "ASMP-A" cruise missile with 300 kt nuclear explosive device (only 2000N)
• 1 × MBDA "SCALP-EG" cruise missile (450 kg BROACH warhead)
• 2 × MBDA "Apache" cruise missiles with 10 × 50 kg submunitions

Unguided air-to-surface missiles

• 4 × Matra F1 rocket launchers, each for 36 × unguided SNEB air-to-ground missiles; Caliber 68 mm
• 4 × Matra F4 rocket launchers for 18 × unguided SNEB air-to-surface missiles each; Caliber 68 mm
• 4 × TBA 100-4 (F3) rocket launchers for 4 × unguided SNEB air-to-surface missiles each; 100 mm caliber

Guided bombs

• 4 × GBU-54 / B Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM , laser and satellite navigation guided 227 kg / 500 lb bomb, based on a Mk.82 explosive bomb with a DSU-38 / B control in the front and an SME -572 / B steering set at the rear)
• 6 × Raytheon GBU-49 (V) 1 / B "Enhanced Paveway II" (also EGBU-12; laser, GPS and INS-guided 227 kg / 500 lb glide bomb, based on a Mk.82 Explosive bomb with control at the front and a MAU-169K / B steering set at the rear)
• 4 × Raytheon GBU-22 / B "Paveway III" (laser-guided 227 kg / 500 lb glide bomb, based on a Mk.82 explosive bomb with control at the front and BSU-82 / B steering set at the rear)
• 2 × Raytheon GBU-16B / B "Paveway II" (laser-guided 496 kg / 1000 lb glide bomb, based on a Mk.83 explosive bomb with front control and rear steering set)
• 2 × Raytheon GBU-24 (V) / B "Paveway III" (laser-guided 1100 kg / 2055 lb glide bomb, based on a BLU-109 penetration bomb or Mk.84 explosive bomb with WGU-39A / B control front and rear steering set)
• 3 × Matra BGL 1000 ( laser-guided 990 kg glide bomb)

Unguided bombs

• 18 × Société des Ateliers Mécaniques de Pont-sur-Sambre (SAMP) (125 kg free-fall bomb ; analogous to Mk.81)
• 18 × Société des Ateliers Mécaniques de Pont-sur-Sambre (SAMP) EU2 (250 kg free-fall bomb; analogous to Mk.82)
• 9 × Société des Ateliers Mécaniques de Pont-sur-Sambre (SAMP) T200 (400 kg free-fall bomb; analogous to Mk.83)
• 1 × 30-6-M2 bomb rack with 18 × Thomson-Brandt BAT 120 (34 kg anti-tank bomb)
• 1 × 30-6-M2 bomb rack with 18 × Thomson-Brandt BAP 100 (32 kg anti-runway bomb)
• 7 × Matra / Thomson-Brandt BLG 66 "Belouga" (305 kg cluster bomb )
• 7 × Thomson-Brandt BM-400 (Modulair bomb) "CASCAD" Mk.1 (390 kg cluster bomb)
• 12 × Matra BLU-107 "Durandal" (rocket propelled 219 kg anti-runway bomb)
• 4 × Rafaut F2 exercise bomb rack with 4 × 50 kg exercise bombs
• 1 × CEA AN-52 455 kg free-falling nuclear bomb; Explosive force 25 kilotons (only Mirage 2000N)

Additional container

• 1 × AMD-BA-630- cannon container with 2 × 30 mm revolver automatic cannons DEFA Canon 30 M 550 F4 (M554) and 600 rounds of ammunition each
• 2 × drop-off underwing additional tanks RPL 501 / RPL 502 for 1700 liters of kerosene each
• 2 × drop-off under wing additional tanks RPL 541 / RPL 542 for 2000 liters of kerosene each (only M20000D / N)
• 1 × drop-off lower hull additional tank RPL 522 for 1300 liters of kerosene
• 1 × air refueling tank Intertechnique 231–300b (basket variant for "buddy refueling")

Additional reconnaissance container

• 1 × Thomson-CSF "Atlis II" (Automatic Tracking Laser Illuminating System) - laser target and navigation container
• 1 × Thales "Damoclès" laser target and navigation container
• 1 × Dassault / Thomson TRT "RUBIS" - FLIR navigation container
• 1 × Thomson-CSF SLAR 2000 "Raphael" - ground penetrating radar reconnaissance tank
• 1 × AMD-BA COR 2 - reconnaissance container with four built-in optical cameras
• 1 × AMD-BA AA-3-38 "Harold" - reconnaissance container with optical and TV cameras
• 1 × Dassault NOR reconnaissance vessel
• 1 × Thales ASTAC (Airborne Electronic Reconnaissance System) - ELINT reconnaissance vessel

Self defense

The sensor information is processed in the self-defense system "ICMS 2" and the disruptive measures are thus also controlled

Active measures

• 2 × decoys launcher MBDA "Spirale" with 56 decoys each ( chaff cartridges 60 mm diameter, installed in a rod magazine at the wing root)
• 8 × decoys MBDA "Spirale" with eight decoys each ( heat torch cartridges 60 mm in diameter, installed in rectangular ejection boxes under the engine outlet and in front of the tail unit)
• 1 × decoy launcher unit MBDA "ECLAIRE M" with six boxes of 8 × 60 mm decoys or 18 × 40 mm decoys
• 1 × Chameleon jammer

Disturbance container (as external loads)

• 1 × EKF disturbance container Thomson-CSF TMV 004 (CT-51J) "Caiman"
• 1 × EKF disturbance container Thomson-CSF TMV 002 "Remora" (CT-51J) "Caiman"

Passive action

• 6 × Serwal ESM gondolas, each with a radar warning sensor

Users

•  Egypt
•  Brazil
•  France
•  Greece
•  India
•  Qatar
•  Peru
•  Taiwan
•  United Arab Emirates

Incidents

On August 30, 1995, the first day of Operation Deliberate Force , a Dassault Mirage 2000 was shot down by an anti-aircraft missile near Pale . Both pilots survived; they were released on December 12, 1995.
On January 9, 2019, a French Mirage 2000D had an accident near the Swiss border near Mignovillard . Both crew members died.

See also

• Fighter bomber
• Fighter plane
• List of aircraft types

Web links

Commons : Dassault Mirage 2000  - Album with Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

• Dassault Aviation Mirage 2000 (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Technical data of the M53 (English) ( Memento of the original from October 9, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 207 kB)  
2. ↑ Technical data F-110 (English)
3. ↑ La patrol Ramex Delta. In: www.defense.gouv.fr. Retrieved August 15, 2016 . 
4. ↑ Jane's Information Group : India set to receive first upgraded Mirage 2000s from Dassault ( Memento of the original from April 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English), Retrieved March 23, 2015 
5. ↑ Bosnian Serbs Free Downed French Airmen
6. ↑ Debris discovered: fighter plane crashed in France. www.n-tv.de, accessed on January 9, 2019 . 
7. ↑ France: Two dead in crash of a French fighter plane. In: derstandard.de. January 10, 2019, accessed January 11, 2019 .