×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Infantry Arms Warships & Submarines Military Pay Chart (2023) Military Ranks
Advertisements
HOME
AIRCRAFT / AVIATION
MODERN AIR FORCES
COUNTRIES
MANUFACTURERS
COMPARE
BY CONFLICT
BY TYPE
BY DECADE
COLD WAR
MODERN AIRCRAFT
Aviation / Aerospace

Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet


Advanced Trainer / Close-Support Aircraft [ 1978 ]



The Alpha Jet series of fast, agile training aircraft is the premiere advanced flight trainer for a variety of European air services.



Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 08/03/2020 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

GO TO SPECIFICATIONS [+]
Advertisements
The Alpha Jet series of aircraft was a joint Franco-German initiative to produce a highly-advanced tactical trainer with close-air support combat capabilities. The French firm of Dassault-Breguet generated the initial evaluation model under the designation of "TA501" (which combined the qualities of two earlier French and German proposals). The concept was accepted for further development by the two participating nations and ultimately was finalized to become the "Alpha Jet" of the late 1970s. Since then, the type has gone on to see service with several other nations including Belgium, Egypt and Thailand.

The Alpha Jet was of a conventional design meant to train upcoming pilots in the intricacies of jet-powered flight and high-speed weapons delivery. The twin-engine, two-seat strike platform proved an agile mount and was given a high-mounted, swept-wing monoplane arrangement which allowed for clearance of various ordnance types under the wings. A single vertical tail fin was affixed to above and between the two engine exhausts (aspirated by forward-set air intakes to either side of the cockpit). The forward-most pilot managed good visibility out of the large two-piece glass canopy. The instructor/co-pilot was seated in the more obstructed rear cockpit position. The undercarriage was of a conventional tricycle layout with two single-wheeled main landing gear legs and a single-wheeled nose landing gear leg - all retractable. Power is supplied by a pair of SNECMA Turbomeca Larzac 04-C5 series turbofan engines buried within the middle-aft portion of the fuselage. Maximum listed speed is 620 miles per hour at sea level with a ferry range out to 1,800 miles. The listed service ceiling is 48,000 feet with a rate-of-climb exceeding 11,200 feet per minute.

Standard armament for the German Dornier mounts includes a 27mm MauserBK-27 series revolving autocannon in a fuselage centerline gun pod. The French Dassault versions substitute this for a 30mm DEFA internal cannon at the same fuselage position. The Alpha Jet supports AIM-9 Sidewinder and Matra Magic II series air-to-air missiles as well as the AGM-65 Maverick air-to-ground missile. Additionally, the Alpha Jet is cleared to carry conventional drop bombs, cluster bombs, cannon pods and rocket pods across five hardpoints (5,500lb maximum load). She is plumbed at two hardpoints for 2 x jettisonable external fuel tanks.

Germany operated 93 such aircraft in its inventory and appreciated the value of the system as both an advanced trainer and a close-air support weapon (the latter in extreme circumstances) and fielded it as such through the Alpha Jet A models produced locally Dornier. German Alpha Jets were fitted with Doppler radar navigation systems and an advanced nav-attack suite capable of fulfilling the close-support requirement. Ultimately, the series was retired from frontline service with the Luftwaffe in 1997 with fifty examples sold to Portugal and a further six to the United Kingdom. As such, Germany is no longer an active operator of the Alpha Jet. The French received 99 Alpha Jet E models and still manage them in their inventory.

In all, some 480 Alpha Jets in a handful of marks were produced for Germany and France and select export customers. The system is still a proven commodity thanks to her sound design, strong performance in the desired roles and inherent versatility. The Alpha Jet series has been modernized and improved on several occasions to keep it a viable battlefield system for the near future.©MilitaryFactory.com
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.
Advertisements

Specifications



Service Year
1978

Origin
France national flag graphic
France

Status
ACTIVE
In Active Service.
Crew
2

Production
480
UNITS


Dassault - France / Dornier - Germany
(View other Aviaton-Related Manufacturers)
National flag of Belgium National flag of Cameroon National flag of Canada National flag of Egypt National flag of France National flag of modern Germany National flag of Morocco National flag of Nigeria National flag of Portugal National flag of Qatar National flag of Thailand National flag of the United Kingdom Belgium; Cameroon; Canada; Germany; Ivory Coast; Egypt; France; Morocco; Nigeria; Portugal; Qatar; Thailand; Togo; United Kingdom; West Germany
(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)
Close-Air Support (CAS)
Developed to operate in close proximity to active ground elements by way of a broad array of air-to-ground ordnance and munitions options.
Training (General)
Developed ability to be used as a dedicated trainer for student pilots (typically under the supervision of an instructor).


Length
43.4 ft
(13.23 m)
Width/Span
29.9 ft
(9.11 m)
Height
13.7 ft
(4.19 m)
Empty Wgt
7,871 lb
(3,570 kg)
MTOW
16,755 lb
(7,600 kg)
Wgt Diff
+8,885 lb
(+4,030 kg)
(Showcased structural values pertain to the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet A production variant)
Installed: 2 x SNECMA / Tubomecha Larzac 04-C20 turbofan engines developing 3,175 lb of thrust each.
Max Speed
621 mph
(999 kph | 539 kts)
Ceiling
47,999 ft
(14,630 m | 9 mi)
Range
362 mi
(583 km | 1,080 nm)
Rate-of-Climb
12,000 ft/min
(3,658 m/min)


♦ MACH Regime (Sonic)
Sub
Trans
Super
Hyper
HiHyper
ReEntry
RANGES (MPH) Subsonic: <614mph | Transonic: 614-921 | Supersonic: 921-3836 | Hypersonic: 3836-7673 | Hi-Hypersonic: 7673-19180 | Reentry: >19030


(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet A production variant. Performance specifications showcased above are subject to environmental factors as well as aircraft configuration. Estimates are made when Real Data not available. Compare this aircraft entry against any other in our database or View aircraft by powerplant type)
1 x 27mm cannon (German Dornier)
1 x 30mm DEFA cannon (French Dassault)

Mission specific ordnance amounting to 5,500lbs. Armament can include any of the following:

1 x 30mm DEFA centerline cannon pod
1 x 27mm Mauser centerline cannon pod
Conventional Drop Bombs
Cluster Bombs
Air-to-Surface Rocket Pods
AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles
Matra Magic air-to-air missiles
AGM-65 Maverick air-to-surface missiles


Supported Types


Graphical image of an aircraft automatic cannon
Graphical image of an air-to-air missile weapon
Graphical image of a short-range air-to-air missile
Graphical image of an aircraft air-to-surface missile
Graphical image of aircraft aerial rockets
Graphical image of an aircraft rocket pod
Graphical image of an aircraft conventional drop bomb munition


(Not all ordnance types may be represented in the showcase above)
Hardpoint Mountings: 5


TA501 - Prototype Model Designation
Alpha Jet A - Initial Production Ground Attack Variant.
Alpha Jet E - Dedicated Two-Seat Trainer
Alpha Jet 2 - Ground Attack Variant
Alpha Jet MS1 - Egyptian Export Model; Close-Air Support variant.
Alpha Jet MS2 - Improved Alpha Jet; glass cockpit; revised avionics and more powerful engine; support for Matra-Magic AA missiles.
Alpha Jet ATS ("Advanced Training System") / Alpha Jet 3 / "Lancier" - Digital glass cockpit.


Military lapel ribbon for Operation Allied Force
Military lapel ribbon for the Arab-Israeli War
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Britain
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Midway
Military lapel ribbon for the Berlin Airlift
Military lapel ribbon for the Chaco War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cold War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cuban Missile Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for pioneering aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the Falklands War
Military lapel ribbon for the French-Indochina War
Military lapel ribbon for the Golden Age of Flight
Military lapel ribbon for the 1991 Gulf War
Military lapel ribbon for the Indo-Pak Wars
Military lapel ribbon for the Iran-Iraq War
Military lapel ribbon for the Korean War
Military lapel ribbon for the 1982 Lebanon War
Military lapel ribbon for the Malayan Emergency
Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the attack on Pearl Harbor
Military lapel ribbon for the Six Day War
Military lapel ribbon for the Soviet-Afghan War
Military lapel ribbon for the Spanish Civil War
Military lapel ribbon for the Suez Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for the Ukranian-Russian War
Military lapel ribbon for the Vietnam War
Military lapel ribbon for Warsaw Pact of the Cold War-era
Military lapel ribbon for the WASP (WW2)
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2
Military lapel ribbon for the Yom Kippur War
Military lapel ribbon for experimental x-plane aircraft


Ribbon graphics not necessarily indicative of actual historical campaign ribbons. Ribbons are clickable to their respective aerial campaigns / operations / aviation periods.

Images Gallery



1 / 5
Image of the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet
2 / 5
Image of the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet
3 / 5
Image of the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet
4 / 5
Image of the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet
5 / 5
Image of the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet

Similar Aircraft



Aviation developments of similar form and function, or related to, the Dassault-Dornier Alpha Jet...


Advertisements




Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies


2023 Military Pay Chart Military Ranks DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content; site is 100% curated by humans.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons.

View day-by-day actions of the American Civil War with CivilWarTimeline.net. View day-by-day actions of World War II with SecondWorldWarHistory.com.


©2023 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2023 (20yrs)