What You Need to Know: France will supply Ukraine with Dassault Mirage 2000-5 multirole fighters in the first half of 2025, as confirmed by French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu. The aircraft are being modified to enhance air-to-ground and electronic warfare capabilities, aligning with Kyiv’s needs.

-However, Lecornu opposed sending the more advanced Dassault Rafale jets due to high global demand, which has delayed production and even impacted the French Air Force’s fleet expansion. The delivery of Mirage 2000-5s depends on Ukraine’s pilot training, which will take place in France.

-The aircraft will bolster Ukraine’s Air Force amid its ongoing conflict with Russia.

Dassault Rafale: The Fighter Jet Not Flying for Ukraine Anytime Soon 

Ukraine received some much-needed good news last week when it was reported that France was moving forward with a plan that would see Paris providing Kyiv with an undisclosed number of Dassault Mirage 2000-5 multirole fighters in the first half of next year. The French Air Force is now modifying the aircraft to enhance the air-to-ground combat capabilities and electronic warfare (EW) systems.

French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu confirmed that the aircraft would be modified to best suit Kyiv's needs.

However, it was also reported on Monday that even as Lecornu is now supporting the transfer of the multirole fighters, he had been strongly opposed to President Emmanuel Macron's original proposal that would have seen the more capable omnirole Dassault Rafale aircraft sent to Ukraine.

Too Successful

Though Lecornu has been sympathetic to Ukraine's cause and reportedly pushed for the Mirage 2000-5 aircraft to be provided as military aid, his opposition to sending the Rafale was due to the high demand for the aircraft from foreign buyers. As previously reported, the Rafale has been adopted by numerous nations and sales continue to rack up.

That has put a strain on the aircraft's production, and according to AeroTime has even complicated the French military's ability to increase its fleet size.

"In 2020, then-defense minister Florence Parly set a target to increase the number of Rafale jets in service with the French Air and Space Force (AAE) from 102 to 129 by 2025. However, the fighter's recent commercial success has delayed fulfilling that goal," AeroTime reported.

As orders from Greece and Croatia came in, and more recently Serbia, France's Rafales were put on the back burner. That in turn has put a strain on how many hours French pilots can fly – and the number has even fallen below NATO standards. As it stands, the French Air and Space Force won't reach its goal of 130 Dassault Rafale fighters until at least 2030.

As a result, Ukraine is unlikely to get the advanced fighter.

This Silver Lining is a Mirage

The good news for Kyiv is that Paris will still move forward with its plans to upgrade the Mirage 2000-5 combat aircraft, and as noted, those warbirds should be in operation in the first half of 2025.

Paris hasn't indicated how many Mirage 2000-5 fighters could be sent, and that is likely to keep Moscow guessing on the capabilities of the Ukrainian Air Force next year. The delivery of the French-made fighters will depend on how quickly Ukraine pilots can complete their training, which will take place in France.

Ukraine's pilots will need to learn a new system, just as many did with the F-16 Fighting Falcons that have begun to arrive in the country this past summer.

Dassault produced a total of 601 Mirage 2000s in all configurations between 1978 and 2007, and during that same timeframe, it served as the backbone of the French Air Force while further scoring success in the export market. Moreover, though it bore a superficial resemblance to the dynasty of Dassault's "delta-winged" fighters that preceded it, the aircraft featured marked advances over the earlier Mirages in structure, aerodynamics, propulsion, and systems.

Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].

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