AirSkyBuster : Aircraft and Airplane

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Mirage IV (Wallpaper 4). Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 4. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 4. The decision to acquire a nuclear strike capability would lead the French to eventually develop land-based and submarine-based missiles, and a strategic bomber, the Mirage IV, with work on the aircraft begun in 1957. Dassault met the French government requirement for a strategic bomber by scaling up the Mirage III 50% in linear dimensions, doubling weight and wing area. The prototype Mirage IV first flew in June 1959, and was fitted with twin Atar 09C engines. The second prototype flew in October 1961, after the French had detonated their first nuclear weapon in February 1960, and was closer to production spec, with a shorter vertical tailplane. There were two more prototypes, the last of which used the production-spec Atar 09K engine, with 4,700 kilograms (10,400 pounds) dry thrust and 6,700 kilograms (14,800 pounds) afterburning thrust. A total of 62 Mirage IVs were built between December 1963 and November 1966. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 4. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 4. Except for the twin engines, the general configuration of the aircraft strongly resembled that of the Mirage III. Less noticeable differences were the tandem cockpit for pilot and navigator, and main gear bogeys with four tires each. The nose gear had two tires. Despite the fact that the Mirage IV had no bomb-bay, was crammed full of fuel tanks, and was also generally fitted with twin 2,500-liter (660 US gallon) drop tanks, its range for its assigned mission, penetrating Soviet airspace, was still marginal. The French expected to acquire a more formidable bomber later, but eventually gave up on developing a follow-on and settled for a fleet of 12 Boeing KC-135F tankers to give the Mirage IV a chance to get back home after destroying its target. The bomber's long needle nose was actually a midair-refueling probe. There was a circular radome on the belly of the aircraft, just behind the air intakes. There were two stores pylons on each wing, with the inner one normally used for a drop tank and the outer one used for a flare dispenser or other countermeasures gear. The weapon for which the Mirage IV was designed, the 60 kilotonne "AN-22" nuclear weapon, fit into a recess in the fuselage. This weapon was modified after late 1967 to be parachute-retarded, when it was realized that the Mirage IV could not expect to penetrate Soviet airspace at high altitude. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 4. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 4.

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Mirage IV (Wallpaper 3). Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 3. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 3. Developed in the wake of the Suez crisis (1956), the Mirage IV is a two-seater, twin-engine supersonic bomber having an effective range of up to 4,500 km with in-flight refueling. The exterior similarity between this strategic bomber and the Mirage III is noteworthy, in particular the wing design, which is of the delta-type in the Mirage tradition. In June 1996, the Mirage IVP were retired. It was the linchpin of France's strategic nuclear strike force. Dassault was the prime contractor for the complete weapon system: aircraft, navigation and attack management system, as well as casing and release system for the nuclear device. The Mirage IV 01 made its maiden flight 17th June 1959 at Melun-Villaroche (the Seine-et-Marne region of France), piloted by Roland Glavany. The first Mirage IV-A was delivered to the Air Force in February 1964. At the time of its delivery, the Mirage IV was the only plane in the world able to fly at Mach 2 during more than one half an hour. The 50 Mirage IV-A ordered in March 1959 were all finally delivered between 1964 and 1966; dispersed on nine air bases, organized into three mixed squadrons of bombardment, composed each of three squadrons of bombardment and a squadron for in-flight refueling. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 3. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 3. In June 1964, it was decided to order 12 additional Mirage IV-A having in addition the strategic capacity; this was explained by the fact that the force Mirage IV was to remain in service at least until 1975, and that had consequently to be compensated for attrition. Thus, in less than 2 years, the first component of the nuclear forces strong of 36 Mirage IV-A and 12 C 135 became operational. The production aircraft equipped French strategic nuclear forces between 1964 and 1996 (62 planes). The most significant modification in the 1970s related to the flight profile of flight of the system. To respond to the increasing effectiveness of air defenses, the system focused on penetration low altitude in order to face the increasingly large effectiveness of the ground-to-air missiles in the Eastern European countries. Some modifications of the structure of the plane were necessary to face the constraints of the flight imposed by low altitude. Internal countermeasures were added, and the the model AN 22 nuclear weapon was modified to be releasable at low altitude. The Mirage IV-P/ASMP program was made possible only by the control of very modern techniques and the judicious choices of the selected options. In addition, the Air Force had to adapt the men and the structures to the integration of the Mirage IV-P and the ASMP. Between 1986 and the end of the lifetime of Mirage IV-P [envisaged in 1996], the deployed component included the 91ème Escadre of bombardment with two squadrons, the Center of Instruction of the strategic air Forces and the 93ème Escadre of in-flight refueling with three squadrons. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 3. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 3.

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Mirage IV (Wallpaper 2). Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 2. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 2. The Mirage IV is similar in design layout to the Mirage fighters, featuring a tailless delta wing and a single square-topped vertical fin. It has two SNECMA Atar turbojets in the rear fuselage, with air intakes on both sides of the fuselage, very similar to the Mirage III's souris ("mice"). It can reach high supersonic speeds: the aircraft is redlined at Mach 2.2 at altitude because of airframe temperature restrictions, although it is capable of higher speeds. Although the aircraft has 14,000 liters (3,700 gal (US)) of internal fuel, its engines are quite thirsty, especially in afterburner. The crew of two (pilot and navigator) are seated in tandem cockpits under separate canopies. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 2. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 2. A bombing / navigation radar is housed within a radome in the fuselage under the intakes, aft of the cockpit. A refueling boom is built into the nose and figures prominently in Mirage IV operations. The Mirage IV has two pylons under each wing, with the inboard pylons being normally used for large drop tanks of 2,500 liter (660 gal (US)) capacity. The outer pylons carry ECM and chaff/flare dispenser pods to supplement the internal jamming and countermeasures systems. On current aircraft, these are typically a Barax NG jammer pod under the port wing and a Boz expendables dispenser under the starboard wing. No cannon armament was fitted. The early Mirage IVA had a fuselage recess under the engines for a single AN-11 or AN-22 nuclear weapon of 60-kT yield. From 1972 onward, 12 aircraft were also equipped to carry the CT52 reconnaissance pod in the bomb recess. The CT52 is available in either BA (Basse Altitude, low-level) or HA (Haute Altitude, high-altitude) versions with three or four long-range cameras. A third configuration is an infrared line scanner. None of the CT52 has any digital systems, relying on older 'wet' film cameras. Later Mirage IVP aircraft could be fitted a single centerline pylon for the ASMP stand-off missile. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 2. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 2.

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Mirage IV (Wallpaper 1). Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 1. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 1. The Dassault Mirage IV is a French jet-propelled supersonic strategic bomber and deep-reconnaissance aircraft. For many years it was vital wing of the nuclear triad of the Force de Frappe, France's nuclear deterrent striking force. Work on a supersonic bomber able to carry a nuclear bomb started in France in 1956 as part of the development of France's independent nuclear deterrent. The final specifications, jointly defined by government authorities and Dassault staff, were approved on 20 March 1957. Dassault's resulting prototype, dubbed Mirage IV 01, looked a lot like the Mirage IIIA, even though it had double the wing surface, two engines instead of one, and twice the unladen weight. The Mirage IV also carried three times more internal fuel than the Mirage III. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 1. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 1. The aircraft's aerodynamic features were very similar to the III's but required an entirely new structure and layout. The 01 was an experimental prototype built to explore and solve the problems stemming from prolonged supersonic flight. The sizable technological and operational uncertainties (no plane had yet been found able to cruise at over Mach 1.8 for long periods of time) were only one part of the problem. The weapon-related issues were the other. It took 18 months to build the 01 in Dassault's Saint-Cloud plant near Paris. In late 1958, the aircraft was transferred to the Melun-Villaroche flight testing area for finishing touches and ground tests. Roland Glavany took the 01 into the air for the first time on 17 June 1959.[1] For its third flight, on 20 June 1959, the 01 was authorized to fly over the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget airport in front of France's President Charles de Gaulle.[citation needed] On 19 September 1960, René Bigand upped the world record for speed on a 1000-kilometre closed circuit to 1,822 km/h (1,132 mph).[1] Flight 138, on 23 September, corroborated the initial performance and pushed the record on a 500-km closed circuit to an average of 1,972 km/h (1,225 mph), flying between Mach 2.08 and Mach 2.14. Photo wallpaper gallery of Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft 1. Mirage IV supersonic strategic bomber aircraft pictures and images collection 1.