The Dassault Super Mystère is a French supersonic

fighter-bomber A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, ...

and was the first Western European

supersonic aircraft A supersonic aircraft is an aircraft capable of supersonic flight, that is, flying faster than the speed of sound (Mach number 1). Supersonic aircraft were developed in the second half of the twentieth century. Supersonic aircraft have been use ...

to enter mass production.

Design and development

The Super Mystère represents the final step in evolution which began with the Dassault Ouragan and progressed through the Mystère II/III and Mystère IV. While earlier Mystère variants could attain

supersonic Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound ( Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater than five times ...

speeds only in a dive, the Super Mystère could exceed the speed of sound in level flight. This was achieved thanks to the new thin wing with 45° of sweep (compared with 41° of sweep in the Mystère IV and only 33° in Mystère II) and the use of an

afterburner An afterburner (or reheat in British English) is an additional combustion component used on some jet engines, mostly those on military supersonic aircraft. Its purpose is to increase thrust, usually for supersonic flight, takeoff, and c ...

-equipped

turbojet The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet which includes inlet guide vanes, a compressor, a combustion chamber, a ...

engine. The first prototype Super Mystère B.1, powered by a

Rolls-Royce Avon The Rolls-Royce Avon was the first axial flow jet engine designed and produced by Rolls-Royce. Introduced in 1950, the engine went on to become one of their most successful post-World War II engine designs. It was used in a wide variety of ...

RA.7R, took to the air on 2 March 1954. The aircraft broke the sound barrier in level flight the following day. As the Super Mystère B2, sometimes known as the SMB2, the aircraft entered production in 1957. The production version differed from the prototype by having a more powerful

SNECMA Atar 101 The SNECMA ATAR 101 is a French axial-flow turbojet engine built by SNECMA. It was derived from engines and design work carried out at BMW in Germany during World War II, and extensively developed though a progression of more powerful models ...

G engine. A total of 180 Super Mystère B2s were built. In 1958, two Super Mystère B.4 prototypes were built. Equipped with a new 48° swept wing and a more powerful SNECMA Atar 9B engine, the aircraft were capable of Mach 1.4. Production never materialized because the faster Dassault Mirage III was entering service. In 1973, the

Israeli Air Force The Israeli Air Force (IAF; he, זְרוֹעַ הָאֲוִיר וְהֶחָלָל, Zroa HaAvir VeHahalal, tl, "Air and Space Arm", commonly known as , ''Kheil HaAvir'', "Air Corps") operates as the aerial warfare branch of the Israel Defens ...

and Honduras Air Force upgraded their Super Mystère B2s with a non-afterburning version of the

Pratt & Whitney J52 The Pratt & Whitney J52 (company designation JT8A) is an axial-flow dual-spool turbojet engine originally designed for the United States Navy, in the 40 kN (9,000 lbf) class. It powered the A-6 Intruder and the AGM-28 Hound Dog cruise ...

-P8A, extended tailpipe, and new avionics. In Israeli service these upgraded SMB2s were also known as the IAI Sa'ar (after a Hebrew word meaning "storm").

Operational history

France

The SMB2 was assigned to three fighter squadrons (5th, 10th and 12th) starting in May 1958. In November 1977, the last SMB2 of the 1/12 Cambrésis fighter squadron made its last flight, thus closing 19 years of service with the

Armée de l'Air The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Ar ...

. About fifteen aircraft from this squadron were then assigned to the Rochefort air technician school. Aircraft no.90 12-YQ was assigned to the Cité de l'Air Military Training Center, at 122 Chartres-Champhol Air Base.

Israel

The

acquired 24 Super Mystères in 1958. Israeli Super Mystères were involved in a controversial incident in which the USS ''Liberty'' was attacked. The aircraft saw action in the 1967

Six-Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 ...

and the 1973

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by E ...

in which 6 were lost. Super Mystères were well-liked by Israeli pilots, and were regarded as good match for the MiG-19 operated by opponents in air-to-air combat.

Honduras

In 1976, Honduras bought 12 complete Super Mystère airframes from Israel. In 1979, Honduras purchased four more aircraft. These provided air support in numerous border skirmishes with Sandinistan Nicaragua, and served until in 1996, replaced by 12 Northrop

F-5E The Northrop F-5 is a family of supersonic light fighter aircraft initially designed as a privately funded project in the late 1950s by Northrop Corporation. There are two main models, the original F-5A and F-5B Freedom Fighter variants and the ...

s. One Super Mystère was transferred to the Honduras Air Museum, and the remaining 11 were offered for sale as surplus.

Operators

; *

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Ar ...

; * Honduras Air Force. ; *

** 105 Squadron

Specifications (Super Mystère B2)

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dassault Super Mystere Super Mystère 1950s French fighter aircraft Single-engined jet aircraft Cruciform tail aircraft Low-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1955