If France sends a fighter jet to Ukraine, it will probably be the Mirage 2000C.
Ukraine is basically building up a pretty strong ground force with Western support. After tanks and artillery, Ukraine is asking its allies for fighters to rebuild its fleet. In a latest move, Ukraine asked France to provide Leclerc tanks as well as Mirage and Rafale fighters to secure Ukrainian airspace. And with France recently stating that it does not rule out supplying Kiev with fighter jets from its inventory, it is very likely that the Mirage 2000C will be considered for sending to Ukraine.
After the US and Germany decided to supply main battle tanks to Ukraine, Kyiv turned its attention to convincing its allies to supply modern fighter jets. According to Ukrainian officials, modern warplanes will strengthen air defenses, fend off Russian attacks, and prepare for a spring offensive.
The French Mirage 2000C fleet was decommissioned on June 23, 2022. If France sends a fighter jet to Ukraine, it will probably be the Mirage 2000C. Mirage 2000 is a multirole combat fighter manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It has been operational with the French Air Force since 1984, and has been selected by Abu Dhabi, Egypt, Greece, India, Peru, Qatar, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates.
Mirage 2000 has nine hard points for carrying weapon system payloads: five on the fuselage and two on each wing. The single-seat version Mirage 2000C is armed with two internally mounted, high-firing-rate 30mm guns. Air-to-air weapons include the MICA air-to-air missiles, and the Magic 2 missiles, both from MBDA. MICA supports a maximum operating range of 60km.
The Mirage 2000C could provide Kyiv with the ability to conduct ground attack operations. With the capacity to conduct ground-attack missions with 500-pound GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bombs, the Mirage 2000C has been upgraded to have some degree of multirole capabilities. Given enough time and the proper approvals, more weapons may also be added to the Mirage 2000C.
The French move could be a turning point for Western allies. In this way, it is possible to motivate other allies of Ukraine to do the same as in the case of Western tanks supplying Ukraine.
Maquinaria muy sofisticada. No veo a los ucranianos, cuya doctrina pasa por manejar material soviético, operando esta pieza tecnificada occidental. Una cosa es operar un tubo NLAW o un Javelin pero esto es otra cosa