Safran M88-2

Twin-engine afterburning turbofan (two per aircraft) purpose-built for the Dassault Rafale, using integrally bladed compressor disks (blisks) and single-crystal turbine blades to keep the engine compact and light for its thrust class.

In service since 1996

Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-08-10

kN thrust

897

8.53

T/W

Procurement snapshot

Availability & export

French export-licensed

CIEEMG inter-ministerial approval; broadly export-oriented.

Channel: DGA / direct commercial

Fielded & proven

Operator data not public

In service since 1996. Status: active.

Lifecycle cost (est.)

No public unit price to model from. Why so few systems publish one →

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.

Overview

Safran unveiled an M88 'T-REX' development at the 2025 Paris Air Show targeting roughly 90 kN of thrust, a 20 percent increase, for the future Rafale F5 standard; that variant is a proposed upgrade path and is not reflected in the M88-2 figures on this record.

Powers these platforms

Systems in the WeaponSpecs database that list the Safran M88-2 as their engine.

Rafale F4

Rafale C

Rafale M

Full specifications

Performance

Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.

Performance specifications
Thrust-to-weight Engine thrust divided by loaded weight. Above 1.0 the aircraft can accelerate going straight up. On a standalone engine record, this is the engine's own thrust divided by its dry weight, the standard figure of merit for jet engines.	8.53 Stronger than 72% of engines

Physical

Dimensions, weight and crew.

Physical specifications
Length Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.	3.54 m
Width Overall width, matters for rail/road transport of vehicles.	0.7 m
Empty weight Weight without fuel, ammunition or crew.	897 kg

Propulsion

Engine, power and fuel.

Propulsion specifications
Thrust Total engine thrust (with afterburner where applicable).	75 kN Bottom 5% of engines
Propulsion type Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…	Afterburning turbofan

Specifications compiled from public Safran and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations, treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-08-10.

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