Sud Aviation Vautour

The Sud Aviation Vautour (S.O.4050) was a ground-attack and all-weather fighter aircraft in service with the French Air Force during the Cold War. It was a versatile twin-jet warplane which was produced by the French firm Sud Aviation (Sud-Ouest) in both single-seat and two-seat versions from 1956 to 1959. The Vautour was also used as a bomber, interceptor, and reconnaissance aircraft. As a matter of fact, for several years, it was France's only all-weather fighter and it remained operational in this role until 1973 when it was replaced by the Dassault Mirage F1. Fitted with sweptback wing, it was a maneuverable and reliable warplane, which was used also by the Israeli Air Force during the 1967 Six Day War. Due to its wing and tail configuration, its appearance was reminiscent of the North American F-86 Sabre or the Soviet MiG-17.

The prototype of the Sud Aviation Vautour made its maiden flight on October 16, 1952. Since jet-powered, swept-wing aircraft was a novelty in those days in the French aviation, the flight test phase to improve and set right technical problems lasted four years, and the aircraft was finally introduced into service with the French Air Force in July 1956 as the Vautour IIN, which was a two-seat, all-weather night fighter and interceptor fitted with a radar set up in the nose, and armed with four 30-mm cannons and air-to-air rockets. Next, Sud Aviation produced the IIA variant, which was a single-seat, ground-attack aircraft; this is version that was acquired by Israel, while the IIB variant was a two-seat bomber, which could carry up to 4,400 kg (9,700-lb) of bombs. All versions were powered by the French-made SNECMA Atar 101 turbojet engines.

Technical Characteristics

The Sud Aviation Vautour was a medium-size, twin-engine, subsonic monoplane. It had a semi-monocoque, all-metal fuselage, with a conical nose and a tapering rear section. The aircraft featured sweptback, shoulder wing, with a sweep of 35°. The tailplane also had a sweptback configuration and it was mounted on the vertical fin of tail assembly. The Vautour was fitted with a bicycle landing gear, which consisted of two main legs set in tandem and retracting into the fuselage. The two SNECMA Atar 101 jet engines were contained in pods carried under the wings. The weapon bay, for bombs or missiles, was located in central portion of fuselage. The cockpit was pressurized and equipped with ejection seat(s). Only the IIN all-weather fighter was equipped with a radar, which was mounted in nose of aircraft.

Specifications (Vautour IIA)

Type: ground-attack aircraft

Length: 15.57 m (51 feet, 1 inch)

Wing Span: 15.09 m (49 feet, 6 inches)

Wing Area: 45 m2 (484 square feet)

Height: 4.5 m (14 feet, 9 inches)

Power Plant: two 7,719-lb-thrust, SNECMA Atar 101E-3 turbojet engines

Maximum Speed: 1,105 km/h (687 mph)

Range: 2,575 km (1,600 miles)

Service Ceiling: 15,000 m (49,210 feet)

Weight: 10,000 kg (empty)

Crew: 1