Mirage 2000
French President Emmanuel Macron, in interview with French TV stations on 06 June 2024, said France planned to sell Mirage 2000 warplanes to Ukraine. Initially there was some confuson as to whether the aircraft would be the two-seat Mirage 200D ground attack variant, or the Mirage 2000-5 air superiority version, with commentators soon settling on the second option. The Mirage 2000-5 is equipped with MICA missiles for air combat (up to 80 km), Exocet anti-ship missiles (up to 70 km), SCALP/Storm Shadow cruise missiles for striking ground targets (up to 290 km/560 km), AS37 Armat anti-radar missiles (up to 120 km) and a wide range of air bombs.
To train the pilots to fly the Mirage 2000-5, France will organise six-month pilot training courses starting this summer, Macron said. The Mirage 2000 is a French multi-role, single-engine, fourth-generation jet fighter. “Tomorrow we will launch a new cooperation and announce the transfer of Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets to Ukraine made by French manufacturer Dassault and train their Ukrainian pilots in France,” Macron told French TV in a live interview. The French president was speaking at the end of a day of commemorations of the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944, which Ukrainian President Voldymyr Zelensky had attended.
Oleh Katkov, the editor-in-chief of the Ukrainian specialist journal Defense Express, believes the French planes could significantly strengthen the Ukrainian air force. "The Mirages' first and most important task will be air defense, especially in countering cruise missile and drone attacks," he told DW 11 October 2024. French Defense Minister Lecornu went on to announce that the Mirages to be delivered to Ukraine would first be upgraded to the latest standards. "In Cazaux, in Gironde, they will be fitted with new equipment: for air and ground combat and defense against electronic warfare," he wrote.
According to Katkov, the French planes will then be able to use long-range weapons, such as the French AASM Hammer missiles with a range of more than 70 kilometers. He added that, as part of the upgrade, it would also make sense to integrate glide bombs into the Mirage 2000-5, such as the American JDAM-ER and SDB, which are already being used by the Ukrainian armed forces, in order to hit targets on the ground close to the front line. The enhanced electronic warfare equipment mentioned by Lecornu is also important. Katkov said it could make both the Mirage planes' navigation systems and their onboard radar or communication systems more resistant to Russian jamming signals.
The former Soviet Su-24 bombers currently being used by Ukraine's armed forces have been deploying the SCALP and Storm Shadow cruise missiles, developed by France and the UK, for quite some time, and doing so effectively. Consequently, Katkov sees the use of these missiles by the Mirage jets as a secondary consideration. Mirage and F-16 fighter jets were developed at around the same time, but they differ significantly in both design and capabilities. According to experts in the field, compared to the American F-16, the Mirage doesn't perform as well in air combat.
"The Mirage 2000-5 does not have long-range air-to-air missiles. The Mirage is suitable for air defense in the hinterland, and for dropping glide bombs," said Katkov. An F-16 can do this too, he explained, but its weaponry means it can also prevent enemy planes from penetrating areas where they too can drop bombs. An F-16 carries air-to-air missiles with a range of up to 160 kilometers, whereas the missiles on the Mirage 2000-5 have a range of only 60 to 80 kilometers. "The Mirage 2000-5 does not have the appropriate weapons to perform such a task," added Katkov.
Kostiantyn Kryvolap, a former test engineer for the Ukrainian aircraft manufacturer Antonov, also spoke of these shortcomings. In his view, the radar on the French planes leaves much to be desired. "Even in our [Soviet] MiG-29s, the radar situation is better than in the Mirages," he told the portal RBC-Ukraine. The Mirage is a combat aircraft, but Kryvolap considers it too outdated to be used as such. A Russian fighter jet could easily intercept missiles fired at it by a Mirage, he said.
Ukraine could begin using French-provided Mirage 2000 fighter jets in the conflict against Russia in the first half of 2025, the donor nation’s minister of the armed forces, Sebastien Lecornu, told the daily Sud Ouest 07 October 2024. Lecornu said that training Ukrainian pilots and mechanics, which is being done at the Air Force base in Nancy, is the limiting factor for the transfer, according to the interview. French media reported in March 2024that Paris was secretly training Ukrainian military personnel as part of a proposed donation of planes built by Dassault Aviation. President Emmanuel Macron confirmed the arrangement in June, announcing that an unspecified number of relatively new Mirage 2000-5 versions of the military aircraft will be provided.
”The key factor is pilot training time, and so we’re going to propose to [Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky] that pilots be trained as early as this summer – it normally takes five to six months – so that by the end of the year they’ll be able to fly these aircraft,” Macron said. Media reports indicate that around a dozen jets could be sent to Ukraine. The French Air Force operates almost 100 Mirage 2000s of various types, plus another 40 are in service with the French Navy.
"The Mirage-2000 does not possess any supernatural capabilities," Dmitry Kornev, a military expert and founder of the Military Russia portal, told Sputnik. "Accordingly, these jets can be countered using the same resources that the Russian Aerospace Forces currently possess." The pundit cast doubt on the much-touted new arms package: "It remains unclear as to how many Mirage fighter jets Ukraine will receive. France is unlikely to supply the Kiev regime with more than 10 to 12 jets", according to Kornev.
"The fourth generation jet is rather capricious; the Mirage will require careful handling and time to learn how to operate it," he pointed out. Operating and maintenance costs for Ukraine will skyrocket, given that it will have to operate different NATO warplanes, including F-16s and Mirage-2000s, noted the expert. The arrival of these Mirage-2000s would simply increase the number of targets for Russia’s air defenses and Aerospace Forces. Kornev said. The military expert also hinted that the French wonder-jets would be eliminated upon delivery to Ukraine.
Ukraine had asked its Western allies send military instructors to train its forces on its soil to meet a growing challenge to build up troop numbers, Macron added. "There is a challenge in capacity. That is why the Ukrainian president and his minister of defence asked all the allies – 48 hours ago in an official letter – saying 'we need you to train us quicker and that you do this on our soil'," Macron said. Macron stressed that helping Ukraine counter Russian aggression "means avoiding the right of the strongest" and announced that this would be the topic of his talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Kyiv had been pushing Europe to increase its military support, with Russia in recent months gaining the upper hand on the battlefield. Zelensky’s visit to France, where on Thursday he attended ceremonies for the 80th anniversary of D-Day and crossed paths with US President Joe Biden, is seen as a crucial time to drum up more help. Macron said Ukraine has asked its Western allies to send military instructors to train its forces on its soil to meet the growing challenge to build up troop numbers.
Macron stressed that France did not want “the escalation of war”. But he stressed that "peace ... will only be achieved if Ukraine can resist". “The situation is difficult,” the French president conceded, adding that the Russian army was striking “heavy blows" in the Kharkiv region. "Peace cannot mean Ukraine's capitulation,” he pleaded. "Peace must come through negotiation," he said. That moment, he felt, had not yet arrived “as Russia continues to advance”.
French authorities may provide Ukraine with fewer than a dozen Mirage 2000-5 multipurpose fighters . The French Air Force has 26 such aircraft, and in order to maintain at least a squadron (20 planes), they can give away only six Mirages, writes La Tribune. According to journalists, such a number of boards is very insufficient to really help Ukraine. Military expert Petro Chernyk noted that at least 40 units of such aircraft should be given to Ukraine for fundamental changes on the front line. According to him, the Mirage 2000 is a French analogue of the F-16.
The Mirage 2000-5, introduced in 1999, represents an upgraded version featuring advanced avionics, enhanced firing capabilities for both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions, and a modern sensor and control system. “The (Mirage 2000)-5 variant has a high-quality radar, (is) fitted with drop tanks, has a reasonable range, and carries a range of air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons,” Peter Layton, a visiting fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute and an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), told the Kyiv Independent. A significant enhancement of the Mirage 2000-5 is the inclusion of the Thomson-CSF Radar Doppler Multi-target (RDY), augmenting its capabilities for deep-strike and close-support missions.
EU policy analyst and co-editor of Le Monde Moderne magazine Alexis Poulin told Sputnik “He's been promising some planes for Ukrainian forces, but he wasn't able to tell the number of planes”. Poulin argued Macron also failed to clarify whether France would send military trainers to assist the Kiev regime, a proposal that has generated significant controversy in recent weeks as it would represent a major escalation of NATO countries’ support. “There’s been a very blurry explanation of what the conflict would be, maybe because he knows that escalation is very dangerous for all parties given the latest declaration of Vladimir Putin saying that he could also provide some weapons to allies of Russia to strike allies of Ukraine.”
“But if you listen to what was said tonight – nothing new in terms of the use of weapons from NATO into Russian territory,” the analyst continued. “And clearly, a lot was said mainly for a French audience because of the European elections that are taking place on Sunday. And Emmanuel Macron clearly wants to state that voting for his party is voting for Europe. And that is very important.”
Russia proposed to discuss the consequences of the use of Western weapons on the territory of the Russian Federation and the sending of instructors to Ukraine during a meeting of the UN Security Council on June 14. This was stated by Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the world organization Anna Evstigneeva at a meeting of the Security Council on Ukraine. “The main problem and threat to international peace and security remains the focus of the United States and the European countries supporting them on continuing the conflict in Ukraine at any cost in order to weaken Russia. The latest statements about the use of Western weapons without restrictions on the territory of our country go in this very dangerous direction, sending an increasing number of instructors or even units of Western countries to Ukraine, the consequences of these reckless actions must be discussed at the Security Council, which we propose to do on June 14,” she said.
Former Antonov Design Bureau test engineer Kostiantyn Kryvolap believes that the French aircraft are inferior to Ukrainian MiG-29s. "Their radars are weaker, and their armament does not allow for air combat. Mirage 2000-5 is considered for air combat. But what can we talk about when you have a radar with a range of 100 km, and a missile can shoot at 80 km at best? If they are thrown at a Russian Su-35, it will simply shoot them down," the expert noted. Valerii Romanenko clarifies that Ukraine previously refused Mirages in the hope of obtaining Swedish Gripen fighters, which are comparable to F-16 in terms of characteristics.
British expert Justin Bronk told Business Insider, under normal conditions, the French Mirage 2000-5 could well be suitable for Ukraine, but now the situation is not like that. According to Bronk, the Mirage 2000-5's effectiveness is primarily limited by MICA air-to-air missiles, which have a much shorter range than the AIM-120 AMRAAM variants that Kiev could use on its F-16s. Bronk said, AMRAAM is also not the best means of dealing with Russian air threats near the front line, as Moscow's powerful ground-based air defense systems force Ukrainian fighters to fly at relatively low altitudes, limiting the effectiveness of their missiles. The Mirage can carry powerful long-range cruise missiles, such as the French-made SCALP-EG, but they can also be launched from Ukraine's existing fighter jets, and are already being used with great success. In addition, according to Bronk, Ukraine does not have many pilots capable of quickly learning the operation and maintenance of such a complex system as a fighter jet. And many of them are already undergoing F-16 training in Europe and the United States. It should be noted that the official rhetoric has changed over the year. As stated by the Air Force spokesperson Illia Yevlash, the Mirage 2000 is capable of effectively striking air and ground targets, and the aircraft is quite modern. Ukraine refused Mirage jets only verbally, but pilots began training, notes aviation expert Valerii Romanenko. According to him, the group of pilots that started previous training in the UK was divided into two. One was sent for training on the F-16s, and the other was sent to France for training on Alpha Jets. "It was clear that they would go to French planes. They don't switch from Alpha Jets to F-16s. In fact, about two months ago, a decision was made regarding training on Mirage jets," he added.
The AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles, which can shoot down targets at 160 km, are not adapted for them, so the Mirage will not be effective in battles with Russian tactical aircraft. Its MICA missile has a claimed range of 80 km. The insufficiently strong radar could theoretically be compensated for by communication with Swedish Saab 340 AEW (ACS 890) long-range reconnaissance aircraft when targeting is transmitted to the missile via the NATO Link 16 system. But the missile's range remains its weakest point, Romanenko explains.
The spokesman of the Air Force of Ukraine Yuriy Ignat said that the information of the French publication Le Figaro about the training of Ukrainian pilots in France on Mirage planes is not true. As "European Truth" reports, he made a corresponding statement on the air of "Radio Liberty" 23 March 2023. "Now there is information that our pilots are training for a month and a half in France on Mirage planes. I would like to refute it immediately so that there are no distortions of various facts," said Ignat. Le Figaro claimed, training of Ukrainian pilots on Mirage 2000 multipurpose fighters has been taking place in France for a month and a half. The decision to train pilots was allegedly made on the eve of President Volodymyr Zelenskyi's visit to Paris on February 8.
Mirage 2000D ??
The Mirage 2000D aircraft could potentially serve as a replacement for the aging fleet of Su-24M frontline bombers, which are insufficient in number, have a high flight hour requirement, and do not meet modern operational requirements. Mirage 2000D were made in 1993 on the basis of the Mirage 200N carrier of tactical nuclear weapons. Mirage 2000D is capable of very high speeds at low altitudes and is the carrier of the SCALP cruise missile. Moreover, the updated modernization also suggests that these Mirages will be able to use air-to-air missiles of the MICA family in the future.
Like the 2000N variant, the Mirage 2000D was developed based on the two-seater Mirage 2000B trainer-combat aircraft. However, it was equipped with a unique set of electronics that enabled it to expand its capabilities as a strike aircraft. The Mirage 2000D emerged as an exceptional choice for Ukraine due to its versatile capabilities and proven track record in modern warfare. Renowned for its agility, the Mirage 2000D offers Ukraine a formidable asset capable of effectively countering various threats. Its advanced avionics, sophisticated weapon systems, and long-range operational capabilities make it a potent force multiplier in Ukraine's defense strategy. Additionally, the Mirage 2000D's reliability and ease of maintenance ensure sustained operational readiness, crucial for defending Ukrainian airspace and deterring potential adversaries. With its combat-proven performance and adaptability to different mission profiles, the Mirage 2000D stands as a strategic investment for Ukraine's defense needs, enhancing its military capabilities and bolstering its security posture in a complex geopolitical landscape.
Kyiv and Paris were discussing the possibility of transferring Mirage 2000 fighter jets from the French Air Force to the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU). According to the Intelligence Online portal report 20 September 2023, the parties are already close to concluding such an agreement. According to the resource, representatives of the headquarters of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces recently made a working trip to France in order to agree on the details of the agreement. We are talking, in particular, about the acquisition by the Ukrainian Air Force of an as yet undetermined number of used fighters in the Mirage 2000D variant, intended for carrying out air strikes on ground targets.
As the portal indicated, this work was being carried out in accordance with preliminary agreements that the presidents of Ukraine and France Vladimir Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron reached back in 2022. According to the Internet resource, several months ago the French side unofficially began training Ukrainian pilots to fly Mirage 2000D aircraft and their weapons. Training is conducted at four air bases: Nancy-Aucher, Mont-de-Marsan, Vélizy and Romorantin-Lantenay.
According to the Aviacionline portal, Mirage 2000D aircraft are optimized for flights at extremely low altitudes and mainly act as attack aircraft, providing fire support for ground units from the air. They can carry ASTAC container-type electronic reconnaissance systems and IR/CCTV laser target designation and guidance containers. In addition, the aircraft are capable of using SCALP-EG / Storm Shadow cruise missiles and laser-guided bombs.
The French Air Force has more than 50 Mirage 2000Ds in service, which were undergoing intermediate repairs with mid-life upgrades. In the process, the aircraft are equipped with new on-board computers and additional sets of navigation equipment, which is designed to increase the efficiency of interaction between crews and aircraft. The capabilities of these fighters to conduct airstrikes and conduct air combat are also being improved.
Fighters removed from service must either be modernized (which is expensive) or scrapped. The French military and political leadership preferred, judging by the September 2023 reports, the second one, and several dozen Mirage modifications D would most likely go to the North Military District zone to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces . Ukrainian pilots, who, apparently, were already undergoing appropriate training, should take the controls. Dassaut Aviation, which has been doing poorly on the trading floors, if and when information about the supply of Mirage 2000D to Ukraine is officially confirmed, albeit indirectly, may be able to squeeze out much-needed benefit.
It should be noted that to date, the aircraft has undergone comprehensive modernization, which included upgrading the ULISS 52P navigation system with global positioning capability, updating the ICMS 2 countermeasure system featuring an enhanced radar warning system SERVAL, and Chameleon Jammer and Spirale containers of chaff and flares. Additionally, the Link 16 system has been installed, enabling more efficient usage of onboard armament and real-time information exchange with allied aircraft. Additionally, a new pod-mounted laser targeting container, Damocles, has been integrated, providing enhanced capabilities in the search, targeting, and tracking of ground targets in adverse weather conditions. It also features higher resolution and uses a new third-generation thermal imager.
As part of the RMV (Rénovation Mi-Vie) program aimed at extending the service life of Mirage 2000D aircraft in the French Air and Space Force until 2040, 55 of the most suitable Mirage 2000D aircraft underwent modernization. The modernization program included the following changes: upgrading avionics, adding the CC422 gun container, integrating new MICA IR air-to-air missiles to replace the outdated Magic-2 missiles, and integrating two new American-made bombs, the GBU-48 and GBU-50. In addition, the aircraft became capable of using French AASM precision kits, also known as HAMMER.
Aviacionline believes that all these features of the Mirage 2000D aircraft are very interesting to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Having received them, Ukraine could not only increase the number of carriers of SCALP and Storm Shadow cruise missiles (currently only Ukrainian Su-24 bombers can use them), but also significantly increase the situational awareness of its combat aircraft.
In addition, as the portal stated, these aircraft will be compatible with F-16 fighters, which countries such as Denmark or the Netherlands are going to transfer to Kyiv.
Mirage 2000 to Ukraine - Background
On 01 March 2024, Sébastien Lecornu, Minister of Defence of France, said at a meeting of the National Assembly Defence Committee said France will not provide Ukraine with Mirage 2000 fighter jets, instead focusing on providing the Ukrainian Armed Forces with bombs that can be adapted to Soviet-made aircraft, . "As for aircraft, on the whole, we are also trying to do something useful. To be as honest as possible, and I’ve never said this publicly, instead of supplying Mirage 2000 jets, of which we have very few and whose MOC [maintenance in operational condition] would present terribly complicated challenges, we preferred to start general pilot training."
Ukraine does not need French Mirage fighters and other obsolete Western aircraft that will be destroyed by Russian air defense. This was stated 21 September 2023 by the representative of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), Yuriy Ignat, commenting on press reports that France and Ukraine are close to an agreement on the transfer of Mirage 2000 to Kiev.
“Any help is important to us, but not in the form of Mirage 2000. We have already talked about this many times,” Ignat said at a briefing at the Ukraine media center, which was broadcast on YouTube. According to him, Ukraine is not interested in the American A-10 either. “Well, the A-10 attack aircraft, how can it help if Russian air defense simply destroys it?” he said. “We cannot now afford to take anything from the aircraft fleet. It is simply irrational, it will simply drain the work of our people.”
Ignat said that the Ukrainian military needs a multi-purpose, modern aircraft. "The Mirage 2000 is an outdated model. There are much better aircraft in France and Europe, so we are looking at these aircraft," an air force spokesman said.
The French Defense Minister confirmed that discussions were underway with the Ukrainian government about sending fighter jets, possibly the Mirage 2000Cs, that were retired by the French Air and Space Force in June 2022. The Mirage 2000-C type, built by Dassault, have an extremely high level of wear and tear and an extremely low ability to hit ground targets and conduct dogfights. Mirage 2000C aircraft were recently decommissioned "but still have a bit of potential", said one official close to the air force command who declined to be identified.
But the air force would first need to re-condition the planes, and train Ukrainian pilots who only know how to fly the Soviet-made aircraft that make up their entire air force. Modern fighter aircraft require about six months of training for experienced pilots, which can be condensed to three months, but not less.
France has 65 Mirage 2000Cs and 12 obsolete Mirage 2000-5s. The latter plan to replace the Rafale and withdraw from service before 2030. French Mirage 2000C fighters have a high level of wear and tear and low capabilities for hitting ground targets and conducting air combat. It should be noted that Mirage 2000-5 can use unguided and guided bombs, carry air-to-air missiles of the MICA family. Initially, these aircraft were produced as a conversion from the Mirage 2000N, which was created as a carrier of tactical nuclear weapons. The Mirage 2000 fighter was the main combat aircraft of the French Air Force in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Mirage 2000-5 modifications were carried out during the 1990-2000s. Each of them can be equipped with air-to-air missiles of the MICA type, which have a combined guidance. The target destruction radius is up to 60 kilometers. In addition, Mirage 2000-5 can use unguided and guided bombs.
The Ukrainian request for combat aircraft was reiterated on 09 February 2023 by President Zelensky at the Elysée. " France and Germany can be a game-changer, and that's how I see our discussions today , he insisted. The sooner we have long-range weapons and modern aircraft , the sooner Russia's aggression will end."
Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov explicitly cited French planes in an interview with Le Figaro on 25 January 2023. "I hear many experts speak very highly of French planes and their pilots, he said. I would of course be very happy if Ukrainian pilots could be trained in the handling of French planes."
On 28 February 2023, during a Senate hearing, France’s Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, was asked by French lawmakers about the issue of the supply of warplanes to Ukraine. “There would be 12 Mirage 2000-Cs currently in storage, ready to be sold. Do you plan to sell them to Ukraine or train Ukrainian pilots?” asked Senator Philippe Folliot. Senator Joëlle Garriaud-Maylam supported Folliot’s question with another specific question. “Is it true that our Air Force is ready to train Ukrainian pilots in Warsaw? This is the information that was given to me. I would like to be able to verify it,” Garriaud-Maylam asked.
Lecornu responded that neither the dispatch of fighter planes to Ukraine nor the training of Ukrainian pilots is as urgent as supplying Ukraine with ammunition to sustain Kyiv’s war effort against Russia. “There is urgency on the shells. The endurance capacity of the Ukrainians rests on the ammunition”, said Lecornu.
However, Lecornu recognized “that there are discussions with the Ukrainians on the planes and the formation.” “The President of the Republic has already said it; there is no taboo,” he said. At the same time, Lecornu explained to the lawmakers that the difficulty in supplying warplanes to Ukraine is centered around issues relating to logistics, training, and mechanical maintenance capacity, “all this in time horizons which are not short term.”
Lecornu believes that such aid could be decided on condition that it "does not weaken French military capabilities ", is "not escalatory" and "does not allow targeting Russian territory". Lecornu, the Minister of the Armed Forces, believes that the question of the delivery of fighter planes to Ukraine is "not taboo". “No one knows how the situation may evolve in Ukraine,” he added in an interview with Le Parisien. "We must continue to give Ukraine the means to defend itself against a Russia which is changing its commitment by increasing its military presence", insists the Minister for the Armed Forces,
The hypothesis of a transfer of Mirage 2000 fighters to Ukraine, pushed by kyiv, is being studied by the executive and the air force. But between the aircraft which no longer have any armament and those which the French airmen still need, the path seemed very narrow.
Three squadrons (40 aircraft) of French Mirage 2000-9 multi-role fighters can become a serious threat to Su-25SM attack aircraft, Su-27 fighters and helicopters of the VKS army aviation. French fighters are equipped with multifunctional synthetic aperture radars (SAR): such devices can be used both for air combat and for detecting targets on the ground.
Mirage 2000-9 is capable of detecting Su-27 fighters at a distance of 110-120 km. The radar of the French fighter provides tracking of 24 air targets and the interception of four targets by MICA-EM / ER missiles simultaneously at a distance of up to 60 km. The fighter can also use ARMAT anti-radar missiles (similar to AGM-88 HARM), Exocet anti-ship cruise missiles, however, the use of BAP 100 and Durandal concrete-piercing cluster bombs in the conditions of operation of Russian air defense systems is not possible.
The fighters can be equipped with TALIOS optical-electronic reconnaissance container systems for destroying ground targets and SCALP tactical cruise missiles with a range of 560 km (version for the French Aerospace Forces) and 250 km in an export modification.
The combat radius of the vehicle when flying at medium and low altitudes is 580-640 km, which may force the Armed Forces to use these vehicles from airfields in the central and southern parts of the country: Nizhyn - Chernihiv region, Chernobaevka - Kherson region, Chuguev - Kharkov region, Kulbakino - Nikolaev (Nikolaev region), Lutsk - Volyn region. The length of the runways of the 1st class is 3000–3200 m, the 2nd class is 2000–2700 m, the 3rd class is 1500–1800 m, the 4th class is 600–1200 m. Mirage 2000-9 with armament needs only 600-700 m of runway, which allows the use of vehicles on the vast majority of military airfields in Ukraine.
Attacks on military airfields and the equipment located on them were inflicted by the RF Armed Forces during the first months of the NMD. After the damage to the runway, flights from the airfield were stopped for several weeks, while the concrete pavement was put in order. Guaranteed incapacitation of airfields (causing critical damage to infrastructure) will deprive the Armed Forces of Ukraine of the ability to use fighter and ground attack aircraft.
However, such destruction is possible only in the case of a full-fledged complex impact with the use of cruise missiles, suppression of the air defense system covering the strategic objects of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and the use of specialized ammunition on the runways - BETAB-500 concrete-piercing bombs - from tactical aircraft.
While the airfields are functioning, the only way to destroy enemy aircraft is to defeat them in the air. The Russian Su-27 and Su-35, equipped with RVV-SD (R-77) missiles with a launch range of 110 km and RVV-BD (R-37) with a launch range of 300 km, can fight the French Mirage 2000-9. The radar of the Su-27 fighters makes it possible to detect Mirage 2000-9 fighters from a range of 100 km, and the radar of the Su-35 fighter makes it possible to detect French fighters from a distance of 350-400 km.
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