This is a good time to develop a Rafale of Electronic Warfare!

Since the start of 2021, the French combat aircraft Rafale of Dassault Aviation is enjoying significant commercial success, with no less than 4 new orders or pre-orders placed by Greece, Egypt, Croatia and Indonesia, for a total of 96 aircraft. According to the Swiss press, it would also be favored by the Swiss authorities for the replacement of its F/A 18 Hornet and F5 Tiger II, and other countries, such as India and the United Arab Emirates, are also being considered for order this year or next year. It must be said that the Rafale in its current version F3R multi mission, and even more in its next version F4 which will bring it fully into the 5th generation, there is no shortage of arguments to put forward. As comfortable in aerial combat as in attack missions, it offers rare versatility and a very favorable performance-price ratio. In addition, it demonstrated its combat effectiveness, and its excellent availability, particularly during operational missions of the French nuclear aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle.

It is common to say that the Rafale knows how to do everything, from interception to sky policing, from surgical targeted strikes to nuclear missions. But there is one area for which the French plane is not well armed, that of electronic warfare, and the suppression of opposing anti-aircraft defenses. Certainly, the Rafale has a SPECTRA self-protection system known to be very effective in thwarting enemy radar and missiles. In addition, its stealth, if it does not equal that of an American F35, still gives it excellent radar discretion, especially since the aircraft knows how to fly perfectly at very low altitude and at high speed in automatic mode. , using natural relief to avoid detection. But it does not have, strictly speaking, the capacity to neutralize the enemy's advanced anti-aircraft defenses, by jamming their search and fire radars, and by eliminating them using anti-radiation munitions, as can TO DO US Navy EA18G Growlers For example. However, this capacity would represent very significant added value for the French aircraft, both for the benefit of the national air forces and in terms of exports. While the number of air forces implementing the Rafale is expected to expand rapidly, the moment seems ideal to design a version of the device specialized in electronic and cyber warfare and the elimination of anti-aircraft defenses: the Rafale E.

To make Rafale an electronic warfare aircraft, it is not enough to add a few HARM anti-radiation missiles and pod jammers. Indeed, electronic warfare and the suppression of defenses require homogeneous capabilities, based on 4 main pillars:

• A device having an energy power, in this case electric, sufficient to supply high power jammers. In addition, the crew must be protected from this high-energy radiation, and have a man-machine interface suitable for this mission, while retaining the inherent capabilities of the aircraft, such as self-defense using missiles. air-to-air. It must also have additional antennas and receivers enabling it to detect electromagnetic sources, to ensure their identification, location and neutralization.
• High power electronic warfare and cyber warfare pods, since the two domains tend to merge now, in order to counter the detection capabilities of opposing radar systems
• Anti-radiation air-to-ground munitions, commonly called anti-radar, capable of detecting and raising the electromagnetic beam of a radar station to destroy it
• Finally, it is essential to have precise and up-to-date data concerning enemy radars, which the Air and Space Force will have at their disposal. the Archangel program

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