Dassault Mirage 4000
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| Dassault Mirage 4000 | |
|---|---|
 Mirage 4000 prototype displayed at the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace at Le Bourget, France. |
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| Type | Prototype fighter aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Dassault-Breguet |
| Maiden flight | 1979 |
| Status | Program cancelled in the 1980s |
| Primary user | French Air Force |
| Number built | 1 |
| Developed from | Dassault Mirage 2000 |
The Mirage 4000 was a French prototype jet fighter aircraft developed by Dassault-Breguet from their Mirage 2000. The new aircraft was noticeably bigger and heavier, being fitted with two (SNECMA M53-2) turbofans, rather than the single engine found on the Mirage 2000. It also featured small canards above the engine air intakes. Despite the changes the two aircraft remain similar, sharing the delta wing design, semi-cicular air intakes and general configuration.
The plane first flew in 1979. It was financed as a private venture by Dassault, possibly with Saudi Arabian money.[citation needed] The Mirage 4000 was comparable in size to the United States F-15 Eagle, and would have made an excellent long-range interceptor. Its weight and ordnance capacity also would have made it a very good fighter-bomber.
In the early 1980s Dassault ended the program shortly after the Saudis chose the F-15C as their preferred aircraft. The French Air Force preferred to concentrate on the Mirage 2000, leaving Dassault with no customers. Some of the expertise thus gained would later influence the Dassault Rafale, but the only prototype moved to its final residence at the Paris Air & Space Museum in 1995.
[edit] Specifications (Mirage 4000)
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 18.70 m (61 ft 4 in)
- Wingspan: 12.00 m (39 ft 4 in)
- Height: 5.80 m (19 ft 0 in)
- Wing area: 73.0 m² (785 ft²)
- Empty weight: 13,000 kg (29,000 lb)
- Powerplant: 2× SNECMA M53-2 afterburning turbofans, 83 kN (19,000 lbf) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 2,445 km/h (1,320 kn, 1,519 mph)
- Range: 2,000 km (1,100 NM, 1,200 mi)
- Service ceiling 20,000 m (66,000 ft)
[edit] See also
Related development
Comparable aircraft
Related lists
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