The following footage was released by the French Air Force. Video of Dassault Rafale jet Conducting a simulated nuclear strike
It shows a Force de Frappe‘s nuclear strike mission flown by a Rafale B multirole jet carrying an ASMP-A nuclear missile (weirdly blurred in the video) belonging to the EC (Escadron de chasse) 1/91 Gascogne at Saint-Dizier.
The video is extremely interesting as it shows the entire mission profile, from the take-off to the return to base, including the aerial refueling from a C-135FR aerial refueler and the simulated attack on the ground target. It lets you hear some radio comms as well.
Related link: Dassault Rafale v/s Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
The attack run is performed at high-speed and ultra low-level: 1,000 km/h at 100 meters.
Last October, the French Air Force celebrated 50 years of French deterrence by the Forces Aériennes Strategiques which are responsible for Paris’s nuclear weapons.
Whilst most countries are a bit “shy” and they usually don’t make their nuclear attack training public, the French are quite proud to showcase their special strike capabilities.
Jeudi 20 novembre 2014, l’armée de l’air et le commissariat à l’énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives ont organisé un colloque intitulé « 50 ans de dissuasion nucléaire : exigences et pertinence au 21ème siècle ». Lors de ce colloque une vidéo fut projetée illustrant les différentes phases de la mission des Forces aériennes stratégiques (FAS).
