Same with these two aircraft, the Rafale is a great workhorse, the Typhoon is more of a thoroughbred. So much depends on if your racing or ploughing a field… :-), my opinion has always been you could just possibly plough a field after winning a race, but you’ll never win a race after ploughing a field.
Well the Rafale can plough your Typhoon bases with nukes. If they’re too far it can do so from a carrier. And if the carrier is too far, some other Rafales could refuel the striker. :dev2:
That said the analysis in the first post is not bad, but I’d like to add a few things wrt AtoA fights.
While it’s true that the Typhoon is getting an AESA & DASS has been greatly updated, it’s also true that DDM-NG is more than meets the eye, that SATCOM & directional data-links are being added to the Rafale to enhance discretion & communication (read situational awareness), and that SPECRA is going from GAA to GaN antennas…
In the AtoA Arena, while it’s true that AMRAAM may have more range than Mica, Mica has the unique ability to send two different missiles seekers which would make defending against it much more difficult. Especially if the defending fighter is unaware that the IR seeker is coming and wastes a lot of energy defending from the first EM missile, only to be caught with its energy depleted by an IR Missile a few seconds later.
Also there is the OSF video channel which greatly enhances identification capabilities in complex ROE scenarios. I can’t remember a war where you could shoot your BVR missiles at max range with 100% positive identification.
Last but not least there is the issue of persistence. With so much more external fuel, there has to be a tactical advantage in aerial combat.
Nic
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