As Russia steps up its air strikes against civilian targets in Ukraine, the countdown between Kyiv and Paris has begun, reports Avions Legendaires. In January 2025, the Air Force AFU is due to take delivery of its first three Dassault Aviation Mirage 2000-5F fighter jets. These fighters, taken from the stocks of the French Air and Space Force, have been modified with the help of the DGA to be much more than the interceptors they are at present. Eventually, around ten aircraft of this type will bear the Ukrainian markings.
They are the fruit of lengthy negotiations between Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky. The French and Ukrainian presidents have made the Mirage 2000-5F one of the hallmarks of our country’s military aid, like the Caesar cannon and the AMX-10RC tanks before it. Unlike the latter, where the training of Ukrainian personnel took just a few weeks, it took several months for Air Force AFU pilots to learn how to manoeuvre the single-seat delta-wing fighter. This is a far cry from the Mikoyan MiG-29 Fulcrum, Sukhoi Su-24 Fencer, Su-25 Frogfoot and above all the Su-27 Flanker still in service in Ukraine. While the Mirage 2000-5F may initially appear to be a small, light fighter compared with the Fulcrum and Flanker, Ukrainian pilots quickly realised that it is also a formidable aircraft designed to fly into enemy territory.
In all likelihood, the first three aircraft will be delivered before 20 January 2025. Some sources even suggest that they are already present in Ukraine, but are currently only used for training flights. It should be remembered that France has optimised the Mirage 2000-5Fs in question so that they can carry and fire SCALP-EG and Storm Shadow cruise missiles… which are in fact the same weapon, depending on whether you are French or British. Ukraine has both versions. The Dassault Aviation Mirage 2000-5F will be the second ‘Western’ fighter aircraft to be delivered to the Ukrainians after the General Dynamics F-16AM/BM Fighting Falcon, and therefore the first to be designed and built in Europe.