Explaining a Mirage

Originally, this was meant to serve as a part of my next update on latest developments in Ukraine. Eventually, it became a - relatively short, but, I hope, interesting - ‘stand-alone’ feature.

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Few days ago, I’ve expressed my surprise at the French arming Mirage 2000-5Fs destined for Ukraine with stuff like SCALP-EGs.

Thanks to several readers (especially Frederic) I know much better now.

That’s serious.

The reason is that I ‘knew’ that in service with the French air force, every Mirage 2000-variant is specialised for one type of mission. The original, single-seat Mirage 2000C, then upgraded to the Mirage 2000-5-standard, is an interceptor; the Mirage 2000D (two-seater) is a precision striker for all weather and night etc.

The reason for this is mix of the state of the arts in the French high-tech industry at the time the versions in questions came into being; their resulting equipment, and their tasks.

I knew the fire-control system on single-seat interceptor variants was centred on a computer that could, essentially, ‘do air-to-air only’; while two-seat strike variant had a different computer, different fire-control system, and a second crew-member to operate all of that equipment in bad weather and by night, while the pilot was busy navigating.

… that said, my approach in this regards was over-dogmatic: I forgot, just for example, that the entire idea for a two-seat strike variant of the Mirage 2000 was actually based on an Iraqi requirement from back in 1981-1983 period. And that back then the Iraqis paid (a lot) for the research and development of a lots of avionics and weaponry nowadays installed in this type (regardless what version).

I also forgot that, actually, it was the Emiratis who were paying (often by delivering Iranian crude to France), because the Iraqis were meanwhile bankrupt.

Because of this, I did not come to the idea that somebody else might have repeated ‘that’ exercise with ‘paying for research and development of French high-tech arms’, but: about a dozen or years later…

And so, what I did not know – but I do know now, thanks to Frederic – is that back in the late 1990s the United Arab Emirates (UAE), while placing their second order for Mirage 2000s, paid the French to develop new computers. The result was the EMTI (also known as the ‘modular data processing unit, MDPU’). When this is installed into, for example, the Mirage 2000 single-seat interceptor (like, for example: Mirage 2000-5), the result is the Mirage 2000-9. This is a single-seater, but a multi-role variant that can do both air-to-air and air-to-ground (and then so well, despite all the US pressure upon the Emiratis to sell off their Mirage 2000s, the UAEAF is still flying them, and is very happy with them, too).

The Emiratis were followed in fashion by few other customers for Mirage 2000s. Greeks, for example, have subjected their Mirage 2000EG to the Mirage 2000-5EGM upgrade, and voila! See Greek Mirage 2000-5EGMs armed with SCALP-EGs:

There you have it: the SCALP-EG-armed Mirage 2000-5EGM of the Hellenic Air Force (the weapon is ‘only’ visible in form of a ‘big shaddow’ under the aircraft). Due to its modifications through installation of advanced computers, some call the resulting Mirage 2000s ‘single-engined Rafales’. Sorry, don’t know who took this photo: copyrights are those of the photographer.

(BTW, the Emiratis also paid for the development of such electronic countermeasures systems installed into Mirage 2000s like IMEWS, which are repeatedly taking US pilots by surprise, during joint exercises with the French air force….)

With other words: it must be expected the French now to do the same with Mirage 2000-5Fs destined for Ukraine.

This even more so considering the fact that all the targeting/programming of weapons like SCALP-EG is done on the ground, before the mission (not once the jet is airborne), thus making a second crew-member unnecessary. Almost needless to say that this is ‘politically more opportune’ for our zombie idiots, too: it’s making it easy for ‘the West’ to retain control over what might the Ukrainians attack with their Mirage 2000s and SCALP-EGs…

A note for the end: all of this is even more interesting considering since few years, the French have also developed a new version of their famous Exocet anti-ship missile. (No, I do not know who paid that, though in their case, it’s always some export customer. )

Point is: the weapon in question is the sea-launched MM.40 Block 3c, and this is meanwhile in operational service.

Mind: nobody said they couldn’t do something for their air-launched AM.39 Exocet Block 2 Mod 2, too…(i.e. ‘don’t tell me I didn’t tell you’).