tmor, you’re funny, its not just “a” source… IT’s Dassault themselves
it seems when the fanboys dont want to accept something, even dassault isnt good enough :diablo:
http://www.dassault-aviation.com/fileadmin/user_upload/redacteur/AUTRES_DOCS/Fox_three/Fox_Three_nr_8.pdf

Designed from the outset to deploy an electronically scanned radar, the Rafale is equipped with the RBE2 radar from Thales. In production since 1997
the upgrade to the active antenna simply involves replacing the tube transmitter and passive electronic scanning antenna with active modules.

i take offense to your ascertain that i bring lies, it seems the only lies are from the fanboys
general Alain SILVY Deputy Chief Plans within the Staff of the French Air Force is quite clear on the limitations of the rafale
http://forum.keypublishing.com/showpost.php?p=1625017&postcount=804

further
http://www.airtalk.org/image-vp113192.html

to anyone, these links show i have given the truth and the fanboys are spewing BullS*it

to buy a mature platform, you miss out some crusial point:
they dont evolve as much in capabilities in the future (are at the top of there lifespan capability)
they tend to be out of date earlier
they dont leave much for the countries own industry exept assembly

Look at the finnish AF for example. There F/A-18 they bought instead of gripen A is now possible about to be replaced. The platform was mature and on the shelf at the time, but lived only for 20 years.

this has just been released
http://www.defencetalk.com/finland-to-upgrade-f-18-hornet-fighter-aircraft-27983/
The Finnish Defence Forces are preparing to spend more than a billion euros in the upgrading of its fleet of F-18 Hornet jet fighters.
The US-built planes are at about the halfway point of their effective lifespans. The upgrade is set to extend their usefulness so that new fighters would not be needed before 2025. Nevertheless, the Finnish Air Forces is looking at other possible jet fighters on the market.

here is a more detailed link
http://www.defpro.com/daily/details/633/

seems self explanatory
“Nor does the team intend to exploit the AESA’s wide bandwidth,
which would mean a new radome”
there are statements that rafales wont have jamming for a start, there has been no statements of more modes, just that the sar mode will be 1 sqm. i’ve also seen sub 1 sqm, so thats still to be clarified

do you have anything that is worth reading, you must have formed your view from somewhere ?

they didnt have the modules and had to invest and wait for them
the advance modes seem to be put on hold for the rafale, going on whats been said
thales themselves will be developing future radar tech, as has been said, they want to try and get gripen and phoon as customers for their aesa

also Thales group isnt just frances tech, each in country thales has its own game
thales australia is firewalled from france

From 2010 A&C about RBE2 AESA :

-The power processing has been dramatically increased with 4 new calculators.

——-

Yeah, same backend indeed.

if you think uprating computers changes the algorithms and function, i dont know what to say, its still the old backend
the rafale did the same with their onboard computers they use from a notepad? to the faster, but its a dead end as they arent being made any more and so wont be able to further upgrade

no, you have me wrong, this point is that the aesa antenna is put on the old backend of the RBE2
if the rbe2 backend was a modern full function, it would be great
the modes and function of the rbe2 is another issue and fall short of the apg-79, i gave the simple thing of single and multibeam, bandwidth and jamming, but that just the start of it
i dont think they have read what the apg-79 will do

nocutstoRAF
well it seems those who have the f-35 info dont feel the same, although there is talk about using the f-35b and putting a second seat where the fan is
i myself thought a 2 seat was what aussies should have, as we are very strong in the f111 and fa-18b+ with this in our CONOPS and as i said all our SH are 2 seat F’s

well they have made up their minds and the f-35 is it, no super hornets
if he had access to why they decided that about the f-35, he could probably say “sweet” no wonder they did