Article Posted on : - Jul 22, 2016

Mirage fighters. A Dassault Aviation photo

PARIS (BNS): Dassault Aviation has received a contract from the French defence procurement agency DGA to upgrade the Mirage 2000D fighter aircraft in service with the French Air Force.

The contract entails mid-life upgrade of 55 Mirage 2000D fighters of the Air Force.

The goal of the mid-life upgrade is to allow them to operate alongside the Rafale combat aircraft of the French Air Force beyond 2030, the DGA said.

The modifications include installation of automatic cannon for ground attack, MBDA-built MICA air-to-air missiles and other weapon system improvement.

The avionics of the fighters will also be modernised.

"The modifications it is to undergo (gun pod, Mica missiles and weapon system improvement) illustrate the upgradability of Dassault aircraft based on operational lessons learned," Dassault said in a statement on July 19.

The Mirage 2000D entered service in 1993 and is specialized in ground attack.