Mirage F1

France's first swept-wing, shoulder-mounted-wing fighter to replace the delta-winged Mirage III, trading delta agility for a shorter takeoff run and better low-speed handling. Widely exported through the Cold War, it has since been retired from French service and largely replaced by newer types among remaining export operators.

In service since 1973 · 5 operator countries

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02

2,350

km/h

4,000

kg payload

Pricing: Unit cost not publicly disclosed

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

French export-licensed

CIEEMG inter-ministerial approval; broadly export-oriented.

Channel: DGA / direct commercial

Fielded & proven

Established · 5 operators

In service since 1973. Status: legacy.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from.

Interoperability

No standardised NATO calibre / datalink detected in public specs.

Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.

Full specifications

Performance

Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.

Max speed Maximum level speed. For aircraft this is at optimal altitude; for ground vehicles, top road speed. Higher means faster response and better kinematic performance.: 2,350 km/h

Stronger than 70% of fighters
Max speed (Mach) Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.: 2.2 Mach

Stronger than 71% of fighters
Combat radius Distance an aircraft can fly, complete its mission and return without refueling. Roughly a third of ferry range.: 425 km

Bottom 6% of fighters

Firepower

Armament, payload and guidance.

Main armament Primary weapon: main gun, cannon or missile type.: 2x 30 mm DEFA 553 cannons
Hardpoints External stations for weapons and pods. More means bigger and more flexible loadouts.: 7

Stronger than 17% of fighters
Weapons payload Maximum ordnance weight the platform can carry. Higher means more strike capacity per sortie.: 4,000 kg

Stronger than 17% of fighters

Physical

Dimensions, weight and crew.

Empty weight Weight without fuel, ammunition or crew.: 7,400 kg
Crew Personnel required to operate. Fewer reduces exposure; autoloaders trade a loader for mechanical complexity.: 1

Propulsion

Engine, power and fuel.

Engine Powerplant model and type.: 1x SNECMA Atar 9K-50 turbojet
Engines Number of engines. Twin-engine gives redundancy at higher cost.: 1
Propulsion type Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…: Turbojet

Program

Cost, production scale and operators.

Operator countries Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.: 5

Stronger than 75% of fighters

Specifications compiled from public Dassault Aviation and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.

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