Actualités du Rafale "le bel oiseau"

Admin a écrit:La rafale de la place il en a... genre camion à bombe en fait (incroyable d'ailleurs)

During combat operations , it clearly appeared that fighters were required to hit distant targets, and tankers were in very high demand. Air forces soon realised that they had become dependent on extremely vulnerable assets, and that long-range strike fighters were necessary to overcome this worrying trend. Thankfully, the Dassault Rafale was conceived from the start to carry an extremely large fuel load, as the internal tanks of a single-seater contain 5,750 litres (1,519 US gallons). Additionally, the fighter is equipped with no fewer than five wet points, and two types of external tanks are available:1,250 litre (330 US gallon) supersonic tanks may be carried on any of the five wet pylons, and 2,000 litre (528 US gallon) drop tanks can be mounted on the centreline and inner wing stations. A pressure refuelling system is fitted as standard for both internal and external fuel tanks, and internal tanks can be refilled in four minutes only. Finally, the Rafale is equipped with an in-flight refuelling probe located to the right of the nose, ahead of the windscreen. For air forces in need of an even larger capacity, Dassault
Aviation has designed two 1,150 litre (303 US gallon) detachable Conformal Fuel Tanks (CFTs) which can be mounted on the upper surface of wing/fuselage blend, causing less drag than traditional tanks, and freein underwing stations for armament. CFTs bring the Rafale’s maximal external fuel load to an astonishing 10,800 litres (2,853 US gallons), and they can be mounted or removed in less than two hours. All Rafales have a built-in CFT capability: CFTs can be adapted to any variant of the fighter , including naval and two-seat versions. The CFTs are being tested at the Dassault Test Centre in Istres, and the first flight of a Rafale fitted with CFTs took place on April 18, 2001, with pilot Eric Gérard at the controls. Supersonic speeds have been evaluated, and various configurations already been successfully tested: long-range strike with three 2,000 litre drop tanks, four Mica and two Scalp stand-off missiles, and air-to-air configurations with Mica missiles. It has been determined that the CFTs had negligible impact on aircraft handling. With CFTs and drop tanks, the Rafale boasts an unrivalled range for such a compact aircraft, offering Commanders greater flexibility, and giving aircrews unprecedented deep strike capabilities

For customers requiring more power, Snecma has launched the development of a growth variant of the M88. Called M88-3, it will be rated at 90 k N (20 , 000 lb ) with afterburner, a 20% increase over the original M88-2. Improvements are not limited to power output, and durability is also expected to be improved. The customer can select a 75 kN peacetime rating to boost even further engine TBO. Although the M88-3 is much more powerful, it will have the same specific fuel-consumption as the M88-2. This is an overall improvement which will help reduce operating costs while increasing the radius of action. «Every effort has been made to retain a high degree of commonality between the M88-2 and the M88-3, and the two variants have about 40% parts in common», explains Jacques Desclaux, Director of the M88 programme. The M88-3 features a redesigned low-pressure compressor for higher airflow (72 kg/sec instead of 65 kg/sec), a new high-pressure turbine, a new stator vane stage, a modified afterburner, and an adapted nozzle. The M88-2 and M88-3 are interchangeable, but the introduction of the M88-3 will impose the adoption of slightly enlarged air-intakes to allow for the higher airflow. These intakes, which can be easily retrofitted to existing airframes, will retain the same drag and low observable characteristics, as the previous one. The Snecma M88 has now successfully entered operational service with the French Navy, and, looking further ahead, other variants could give even more power. Tailored to simultaneously excel in low altitude and air-combat flight regimes, this outstanding turbofan offers a combination of extremely high thrust and very low cost of ownership.

Admin a écrit:
Avec le Qatar on aura probablement le M88-3 (si j'ai compris l'entrée d'air spécifique est prête et le M88-3 rentre...) et les CFT
Tu rajoutes un peu de poussée vectorielle et tu fais pleurer les anglais non ?

Sintex a écrit:

Admin a écrit:
Avec le Qatar on aura probablement le M88-3 (si j'ai compris l'entrée d'air spécifique est prête et le M88-3 rentre...) et les CFT
Tu rajoutes un peu de poussée vectorielle et tu fais pleurer les anglais non ?

Si on va par là, un rafale M avec  2 * M88-3 à 9K, une poussée vectorielle 2D (uniquement vers le haut avec un débattement de 10 à 20° pour limiter les coûts) et tu as un très bon STOBAR. Sans doute meilleur que les sukkoi et mig navalisés, et bien plus performant (charge utile, rayon d'action, cout) que le F35B.
Ca peut intéresser toutes les marines équipées en STOBAR, et pas (encore) clientes du F35B...
Dassault estime déjà que son rafale peut décoller sur tremplin, le problème c'est l'impact sur la charge utile. Avec plus de patate et un décollage "vectoriel" assisté ça pourrait le faire.