Dassault MD.454 Mystere IV

Single-Seat, Jet-Powered Fighter / Fighter-Bomber

France | 1953

"An extension of the Dassault Mystere II series aircraft, the Mystere IV found greater success at home and abroad in the fighter-bomber role."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 02/20/2018 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

The Dassault Mystere of 1954, a straightforward, swept-wing development of the earlier Ouragan jet fighter of 1952, was not an outright success and prone to structural failures. As such only 171 were built and these served solely with the French Air Force for their time in the air. More work was needed to bring the swept-wing fighter to a better standard and this resulted in the MD.454 Mystere IV, a refined, much-improved evolution of the series which went on to see considerably more success than its predecessor.

Mystere IV Development
The Mystere IV was more an extension of the Mystere II mark than the Mystere IIC which reached operational service. Engineers worked within the established framework of the Mystere II but were able to apply various structural improvements based on lessons learned from the original project. The result was a prototype, essentially an all-new aircraft despite its Mystere II origins, achieving a first-flight on September 28th, 1952. Such was the speed in bringing this aircraft to the market that it was introduced as soon as April 1953 - the original MD.452 Mystere arrived in 1954 and was soon relegated to a training role and ultimately retired from French Air Force service.

Mystere IV Production
Production of the Mystere IV spanned from 1953 until 1958 and yielded 432 examples (including prototypes). The initial fifty airframes were equipped with the Rolls-Royce "Tay" turbojet and the remainder of the batch followed with the locally-produced Hispano-Suiza "Verdon 350" model turbojet engines, the licensed form of the British Tay.

Mystere IV Walk-Around
In form and function, the Mystere IV held true to its Mystere origins in that it had a circular nose-mounted air intake, low-mounted swept-back wing mainplanes and a retractable tricycle undercarriage. The cockpit was centered ahead of the mainplanes and aft of the nose intake. The tail unit incorporated a single fin with mid-mounted planes. The jet engine exhausted under the fin element in typical fashion. The Verdon engine produced 7,716 lb of thrust and propelled the aircraft to speeds of 690 miles per hour up to a ceiling of 49,200 feet and out to ranges of 570 miles. Rate-of-climb was 7,875 feet-per-minute.

Aboard were 2 x 30mm DEFA cannons and support was given for up to 55 air-to-air rockets held in a retractable ventral pack (just under the cockpit floor). There was also provision for up to 2,200lb of externally-held drop-ordnance across four hardpoints. Drop tanks could be fitted for improved operational ranges.

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The Mystere IV in Service
The French Air Force stocked some six squadrons with its new fighter-bomber and some were used in the Suez Crisis of 1956. The service utilized the series into the 1980s before the line was retired in favor of more modern alternatives. French Air Force Mystere IV strength reached 241 examples.

The newly established nation of Israel passed on purchasing the Mystere IIC for the much improved Mystere IV when it committed to twenty-four of the type in 1955. First-deliveries occurred in 1956 and these became the country's first swept-wing designs. Later that year a follow-up order increased fleet strength by thirty-six units. These aircraft were also featured in the Suez Crisis against the Egyptian foe where they undertook both air-to-air and air-to-ground sorties and fared well against the vaunted Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 jet fighter - a contemporary to the Mystere IIC. The Israelis lost one Mystere IV to the enemy's 147 aircraft and this to ground-based fire.

Israeli Mystere iVs soldiered on into 1971 before seeing retirement from frontline duties. Israeli Mystere IV strength reached 110.

India was the only other notable operator of the Mystere IV and a total of 110 examples were delivered. These were purchased in 1957 and were pushed into combat actions in the 1965 war against neighboring Pakistan (Indo-Pak War, the first of two major confrontations between the two parties). The series did well for itself in the war and managed air and ground kills. After the conflict, the Mystere IV fleet was drawn down in 1973 - but not before playing a role in the Indo-Pak War of 1971.

Variants
The Mystere IV program involved one prototype and the 421 Mystere IVA production aircraft that following it. The Mystere IVB was a proposed model to feature either the Rolls-Royce Avon turbojet engine or the homegrown SNECMA Atar 101 series. A radar ranging gunfight was also installed and six examples were built in a pre-series form. However, the product was not adopted as the French Air Force focused on the Super Mystere instead (detailed elsewhere on this site).

The Mystere IVN was a proposed two-seat night-fighter development of the IV. This was to carry the American AN/APG-33 radar fit and be powered by the Rolls-Royce Avon while armed through a 55 x 68mm Matra retractable ventral rocket pack. While flying on July 19th, 1954 it was not selected for further development as other mounts stood up to take the role of night hunter.

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Dassault Mystere IVA Single-Seat, Jet-Powered Fighter / Fighter-Bomber.

1 x Hispano-Suiza Verdon 350 turbojet engine developing 7,716lb of thrust.
Propulsion

690 mph
1,110 kph | 599 kts
Max Speed

49,213 ft
15,000 m | 9 miles
Service Ceiling

569 miles
915 km | 494 nm
Operational Range

7,875 ft/min
2,400 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Dassault Mystere IVA Single-Seat, Jet-Powered Fighter / Fighter-Bomber.

1
(MANNED)
Crew

42.3 ft
12.90 m
O/A Length

36.5 ft
(11.12 m)
O/A Width

15.1 ft
(4.60 m)
O/A Height

12,919 lb
(5,860 kg)
Empty Weight

20,944 lb
(9,500 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Dassault MD.454 Mystere IV Single-Seat, Jet-Powered Fighter / Fighter-Bomber .

STANDARD:
2 x 30mm DEFA autocannons under the nose.

OPTIONAL:
55 x Aerial rockets in retractable ventral pack.

Up to 2,200lb of external stores including drop bombs, rockets and fuel drop tanks across four hardpoints.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Dassault MD.454 Mystere IV family line.

Mystere IV - Base Series Designation; covers single prototype equipped with Rolls-Royce Tay 250 series turbojet engine.

Mystere IVA - Production-quality form with Tay 250 engine and French locally-produced form of same engine; 421 examples completed.

Mystere IVB - Fitting either Rolls-Royce Avon or SNECMA Atar 101 turbojet engine; nine examples built including three prototypes and nine pre-series models.

Mystere IVN - Proposed two-seat, radar-equipped night fighter with ventral rocket attack pack.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Dassault MD.454 Mystere IV. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 432 Units
Contractor(s): Dassault Aviation - France

[ France; India; Israel ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 750mph

Lo: 375mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (690mph).

Graph Average of 563 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

432

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

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Aviation Timeline

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WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

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Image from the Public Domain.

Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

AIR-TO-AIR COMBAT

GROUND ATTACK

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon for the Indo-Pak Wars

Military lapel ribbon for the Suez Crisis

Going Further...
The Dassault MD.454 Mystere IV Single-Seat, Jet-Powered Fighter / Fighter-Bomber appears in the following collections:

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