Thiaria: Other people's airplanes

Hi again!

Dassault Mirage 4000 (I've posted a 4000 before, but this one has been completely redrawn)

Despite the great success of the Mirage F-series (over 1100 built between 1971 and 1989), Dassault continued to pursue the delta wing. The advent of FBW in the 1970s allowed for unstable airframe designs with extreme maneuverability, for which delta wings were considered particularly suitable. Simultaneously, SNECMA provided the M53, a high-powered turbofan equal in power to the Rolls-Royce Spey, enabling Dassault for the first time to design airplanes with a thrust-weight ratio of 1. By the late 1970s, two basic designs had matured: The 7,5 ton single-engine Mirage 2000, which first flew in 1978, and the 13-ton twin-engine Mirage 4000, which took to the air in 1979.
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While the Armée de l’Air took instant interest in the 2000, triggering several export orders, the 4000, an impressive airplane capable of Mach 2.35, with very long range and eight tons payload, satisfied no immediate French requirement, and despite intense marketing efforts, no export orders were secured. The AdA had the Orfraie for the bomber role and considered the 4000 too heavy to be a proper dogfighter as well, despite Dassault’s promise that the 4000s canards would give her similar agility as an F-15. French disinterest might have killed the project, but events in the Middle East would eventually create a requirement. After initial success, Iraqi forces ran into stiffening Iranian resistance from 1982, and the Phantoms and Tomcats of the Iranian Air Force proved superior to Iraq’s Mirage F.1s and MiG-23s even under embargo conditions. At the same time, two dozen Israeli F-15s cut swathes through the Syrian Air Force during the Lebanon war. The Arab world, it seemed, needed a cure for that scourge; as the Americans trusted only the Saudis enough to sell them F-15s (strictly prohibiting their re-sale), something else was needed. At that time, the only plane that came close to the F-15s performance was the Mirage 4000, although it was still less powerfully motorized. Unfortunately, it was more expensive than the F-15 too, and the Iraqis could not even dream to afford it. The Egyptians, who had already ordered the Mirage 2000 in the fighter role, showed interest in the 4000s bomber version, but their limited requirement of 50 machines was not enough to start series production. By the following year however, Iraq’s position had further deteriorated. The Iranians were on the counteroffensive, pushing the Iraqis back, and the Saudis became distinctly nervous. They decided to aid the Iraqis with a large arms purchase spree in France, centered around Gazelle Helicopters, HOT and Exocet missiles – and a hundred Mirage 4000 air superiority fighters as Tomcat killers. At the same time, Thiaria had finally run out of spare parts for its soviet-supplied fleet of Su-15s and needed to replace them, also approaching France for 80 machines. The Saudi, Egyptian and Thiarian orders added up to 230 units, enough for Dassault to set up series production early in 1984. Deliveries were scheduled to start in 1986, ten years after the first F-15 had been issued to the USAF. The first dozen arrived without markings in Saudi-Arabia in June that year and were transferred to Iraq by year’s end.
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The war against Iran was drawing to a close when the first Iraqi Mirage 4000 squadron was operational. They never had a run-in with the Tomcats they were purchased to defeat; when the war ended, about half the order was delivered to Saudi-Arabia. Deliveries were slow because Thiaria’s order was prioritized, because they paid extra due their simmering conflict with Brazil. By mid-1988, the Iraqi Air Force had received 10 double-seaters and 37 single-seaters. Then Saddam’s genocidal campaign against the Kurds earlier that year became public knowledge, and the French government put further deliveries on hold. Being the cream of Saddam’s Air Force, the 4000s were priority targets for coalition forces during the second gulf war. Of 47 machines, 31 were destroyed on the ground, four shot down (one by an USAF F-15, one by a RN Tempest, one by a RRAF Tempest and one by a Thiarian Navy Siolpaire) and the remainder flown to Iran. Facing overwhelming odds, the Iraqi 4000s failed to score a single air-to-air kill. The Iranians, unable to operate them, grounded their dozen and sold them to Egypt in 1997 as spare donators.

As the planes were already paid, the French Air Force was happy to take over 18 double-seaters and 30 single-seaters; another five single-seaters of the Saudi/Iraqi order were re-ordered as double-seaters. All were in service with the Armée de’l Air in 1989, equipping one fighter squadron (the EC 2/2 Côte d’Or) and an OCU (the EC 3/10 Vexin); several were assigned to the Centre d’essais en vol and used for trials.
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The fighters reported FOC in time for the Gulf war, but did not partake, because their payment was still a diplomatic issue between France and Saudi-Arabia; an international court would rule in 1993 that the Saudis could not get a refund because they were violating an international embargo against Iraq. The EC 2/2 - the fighter squadron with the coolest ever badge worldwide IMHO - was deployed to Djibouti in the 1990s and took part in the Madagaskar intervention in 2000, where they scored their sole three air-to-air kills in French service.
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Afterwards, they were refit with Mica Missiles. They replaced the four R.530D under the fuselage with twin mounts for Mica EM and the Magic IIs under the wings with four Mica IR for a total of 12 missiles. During the 2000s, they occasionally were deployed to the Baltic, and from 2014, they covered allied air operations during the Libyan civil war, against zero airborne resistance. They were retired from 2015 at an average age of 27 years and replaced with Rafales.
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Starting in 1985, 80 airframes were shipped to Thiaria in kits and locally assembled; the first Thiarian machine was completed at about the same time as the first Iraqi one. All were in service by 1988. They equipped three fighter squadrons (8th, 20th and 39th) and – together with some Mirage F.4s – the Air Force’s Fighter school (31st squadron). They had their combat debut during the New Portugal war of independence in 1997 and wreaked havoc among the Brazilian Air Force; 20th squadron was deployed to South Africa during the 2000 Madagaskar intervention and gave a good account of itself too. Mirage 4000 units produced Major Rudraig MacAthair, Thiaria’s top jet ace with 7 kills, and Captain Niamh Direann, the nation’s first female fighter pilot to score an air-to-air kill (against a Lemurian Joshan fighter).
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Like France’s 4000s, the Thiarian machines were rearmed with Mica missiles around the turn of the century; they also received an all-Thiarian AESA radar of superior performance. They served till their replacement with 4000Fs in 2012 through 2014, aged 26 years.
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The Egyptian contingent of 48 double-seaters was delivered from 1987 through 1989, equipping three bomb squadrons (each had ten bombers and two trainers with double steering; the remaining airframes were kept in reserve). An Egyptian squadron was the only Mirage 4000 unit to take part in the Gulf war on the coalition’s side, but due to inexperience of its pilots did not leave much of an impression. They later saw action in the Libyan civil war. The Egyptians suffered seven accidental losses, and six were shot down by AAA during the Libyan and Sudanese interventions. 35 remaining machines still equip two bomb squadrons in 2022, approaching 35 years of age; they will be replaced with Rafales by 2025.
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By the time series production of the Mirage 4000 was geared up, the AdA’s oldest Mirage IVs reached the end of their designed 20 year lifetime. The export orders allowed Dassault to cut the 4000s price to an acceptable level, and in 1986, 75 two-seat machines were ordered as a replacement for the Mirage IV, to form six nine-ship squadrons (EB 1/91 Gascogne, 2/91 Bretagne, 3/91 Beauvasis, 1/94 Bourbonnais, 2/94 Marne and 3/94 Arbois). The first Mirage 4000N (Nucleaire) were commissioned in 1988; both wings reported FOC in 1992. The Mirage 4000N were armed with the ASMP nuclear cruise missile, but all were also capable of deploying conventional ammunition. After the Soviet collapse of 1996, the AdA’s nuclear component was disbanded, transferring nuclear deterrence exclusively to the Navy. The 4000N squadrons were disbanded in 1997 through 1999 and the machines were transferred to three 15-ship strike squadrons (EC 1/30 Cote d’Argent, EC 2/30 Normandie-Niemen and EC 3/30 Lorraine) formerly equipped with Orfraies. They were brought to 4000D level with new radars and avionics and called 4000D2 afterwards. They saw action in the Libyan and Syrian civil wars. Replacement with Rafale commenced in 2013, when the 4000Ns had reached 25 years of age; by 2018, the last 4000N unit was disbanded. Throughout their service, they suffered only a single accidental loss (birdstrike while taking off, unarmed). About 40 remain on storage as spare donators for the 4000D fleet.
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By the time the last 4000N was handed over to the AdA, a second order of 75 twin-seaters was placed to replace the Breguet Orfraie in the conventional interdict, ECM and SEAD role, and production continued smoothly. The Mirage 4000D had improved ECM and could employ a wide range of guided bombs and missiles; externally, there was little difference to the 4000N or the Egyptian 4000D, although the latter had much simplified electronics. The first 4000D was delivered to the AdA in 1993, and by 1997, three 15-ship squadrons (1/4 Dauphine, 2/4 Lafayette and 3/4 Limousin) were operational, with additional machines transferred to the OCU (EC 3/10 Vexin). They saw action in the Madagaskar intervention and the Libyan civil war, and suffered three combat losses and four accidents. The remaining machines are still in service as of 2022 after a thorough midlife refurbishment in 2011 through 2015, extending their planned service life to 35 years till 2028 - 2032. There currently are no plans for their replacement.
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The only other export customer for the first generation Mirage 4000 was India. The Indian Air Force had received 80 Mirage 2000 fighters during the late 1980s and early 1990s and held the type in high regard. By that time, their fleet of Canberra bombers was hopelessly obsolete, and the 4000D was chosen as India’s new long-range interdictor in 1993. The Indian version differed by having a single canopy for both crew members and a new, Israeli-sourced avionics suite. Deliveries commenced in 1996, and in 1999, 60 machines were delivered to equip four 12-ship bomb squadrons. They were equipped to drop free-fall nukes and play an important part in India’s nuclear deterrence triad. Although the oldest of them have reached 25 years of age in 2021, they remain in service, and as of early 2022, replacing them is not an issue.
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The last 4000D delivered to the Indian Air Force was the ultimate first-generation Mirage 4000 ever built. By 2000, the Rafale was commissioned into the French Air Force, and the story of the Mirage 4000 seemed over after 438 airframes built over a period of 15 years. Dassault had moved on and dismantled the production line, and nobody expected any further 4000s to be built. This however proved premature. By 2000, the Thiarian Air Force was investigating a radical upgrade to ready its 4000C fighter force for the 21st century. The changes proposed by SCI were so radical that the resulting plane received the new designation T6S. They installed an all new bow section with stealthy shape and diverterless air intakes, a new glass cockpit with voice control, larger canards and twin tail fins for improved maneuverability and sustained turn rate, completely new wings with larger fuel tanks and only a fraction of the former radar cross-section, and more powerful M53-P3 engines with 72 kN thrust dry and 108 kN with reheat. The whole package weighed half a ton less than the 4000C and was armed with two DEFA 791 cannon, six Meteor and four Mica IR missiles. Speed was restricted to Mach 2 due to the simplified air intakes, but otherwise, they had a vastly superior performance envelope. SCI received one single-seat 4000C and one twin-seat 4000B from the Thiarian Air Force in 2000 for modification and presented two T6S prototypes in 2003. The Thiarian Air Force was instantly impressed, but rather than refurbishing the extant 4000C force, they decided to buy 56 new aircraft to replace the ageing Mirage F.4 fleet in the interceptor role (Squadrons 4, 22 and 25). They were produced entirely in Thiaria, and delivered between 2006 and 2009.
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Being a development of a 25-year old basic design, they came cheaply for a generation 4+ fighter. With Dassault’s permission, SCI marketed the T6S as the Mirage 4000E (double-seater) and Mirage 4000F (single seater). There was no requirement for them in the AdA, because they were single-role interceptors, which was considered a waste of money in contemporary Europe, but the Canadian Air Force was looking for a long-range interceptor to replace the F-18L in that role, which it had to provisionally fill when the Hurricane was retired without replacement in 1997. As the USA was unwilling to export the F-22, even to an ally as close as Canada, the next longest ranged plane on the market was the 4000F. An order over 50 machines to equip two 18-ship interceptor squadrons was placed in 2008 and processed in 2010 through 2012. They were less powerfully armed than the Thiarian machines, relying on AMRAAMs and Sidewinders, but still a huge improvement over the obsolescent F-18L.
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While deliveries to Canada were underway, the Thiarian Air Force ordered another batch of 56 new-built 4000Fs to replace the 4000C; refurbishing the old airframes was considered uneconomical at that time. They were delivered between 2012 and 2015 to the 8th, 20th and 39th squadrons and reported FOC in 2017. Of the total of 112 machines, 18 were double-seaters, which were distributed among the six operational squadrons, each of which now contained 12 4000Fs and 2 4000Es.
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The 112 4000Fs will remain Thiaria’s standard air defence fighter till the FCAS becomes available after 2038.

Cheers
GD

Hi all!

The next one is also a remake, more faithful to the sole surviving sketch of the planned original than my first attempt.

Breguet Br.120 Orfraie (Sea Eagle)

When French government decided to proceed with the PA58 aircraft carrier in 1961 due to ongoing Soviet efforts to put carriers to sea, both vessels were planned to perform a nuclear strike role in addition to their normal antiship, ASW and air defense duties. To that end, France and Verdun were to embark four squadrons each: fifteen Sirocco air superiority fighters, nine Alizé ASW aircraft and, as their main punch, twenty-four specimens of a new airplane for attacking heavily defended targets on land. Dassault had promised to navalize the Mirage IV, but failed to get the high landing speed under control, and that project faltered in 1963, when both new carriers were already under construction. Dassault then was forced by the French government to team up with BAC to produce AFVG, a one-size-fits-all omnirole strike-fighter for both Armée de’l Air and Aeronavale. Dassault detested this project from the beginning; he hated not to be in full control, and feared the plane would supersede all his various Mirage projects. In 1967, Dassault’s strategy of stall and delay succeeded, and AFVG was cancelled. But it was Dassault’s prime contender Breguet who would reap the rewards.

Since 1962, Breguet Aviation was developing the Br.120 project for a heavy strike aircraft as a direct contender for the smaller AFVG. It had big fixed wings, a side-by-side cockpit for the crew and an internal weapons bay. A prototype took to the air in 1964, but showed unsatisfactory flying characteristics due to a stern design which provided lift in places it was not needed. Additionally, it had to make do with Atar 9C engines instead of reheated Speys, resulting in drastically reduced performance (Mach 2,4 had been planned, Mach 1,5 was attained). With AFVG an active project, Breguet’s plane was no longer subsidized after 1964 and shelved accordingly. But someone at Breguet sensed that AFVG would go south sooner or later, and kept the project alive. A new stern similar to the smaller Br.121 (a downscaled development of the Br.120 which formed the basis for the later SEPECAT Jaguar) was designed, Atar 9K-50 engines were substituted for the 9Cs, the internal bomb bay was deleted to accommodate more fuel, and the wing was re-designed with blown flaps and more area to get landing speed down. A second prototype was tested late in 1966 with much better results, just in time when AFVG blew up in 1967. Despite weighing 15 tons empty, the Br.120 was capable of Mach 2 with two Atar 9K-50 of 50/72 kN. The very large wings provided nimble flight characteristics for a plane of its size and allowed the Br.120 to take off at MTOW without RATO. Despite the poor fuel efficiency of the Atar 9K-50, internal fuel supply was sufficient for a fully loaded combat radius of over 800 kilometers on a lo-lo-lo mission profile. Seven external hard points could accommodate 8.500 kilograms of payload (500kg on each of the outer ones and 1.500 kg for the inner ones and the centerline pylon). Maximum take-off weight reached 30.500 kilograms, more than the Mirage IV; despite this, the Br.120 needed only half the runway length. A complex avionics suite including state-of-the-art ECM and self-defense systems and an Antilope terrain-following radar for low-level flight was provided. Gun armament comprised two 30mm DEFA 551 with 180 rpg for strafing and self-defence. An official presentation in 1967 rendered everyone very impressed; then the plane was rejected as too expensive. Unlike AFVG, which would have been fully omnirole, the Br.120 was a mission-specialized bomber without any anti-air capabilities; thus, requirement was limited to 80 machies for the Aeronavale (four operational squadrons for France and Verdun, plus a land-based squadron as OCU and some machines as material reserve) and 60 for the Armee de’l Air (three bomber squadrons replacing the Vautour), denying the project any kind of economy of scale. Breguet’s cost calculation amounted to $ 7.000.000 per plane (in 1967 dollars); as an F-4B could be had for $ 2.000.000 at that time and give full multirole capability, this was obviously unacceptable. Even Britain’s Hurricane was offered for less than four million dollars apiece, and the Buccaneer for even less. Breguet thus was told to cut price in half or forget it. Given the availability of foreign alternatives, they had no choice but comply; this was only possible by securing massive export sales. Fortunately, some of these were already in the works.

Thiaria had acquired two old Essex-class carriers from the USA and purchased some Sirocco fighters and Alizé ASW planes from France; both carriers were to be heavily reconstructed for larger capacity and equipped with the most capable carrierborne strike aircraft available. Thiaria went for the high-risk option of an all-new plane, after the USA showed reluctant to deliver F-4s; in 1966, they placed an option on 80 Br.120s to be delivered in kits for local assembly. The option was converted to a firm order in 1967. At the same time, Germany’s naval aviation was interested in a new antiship platform, with the designed 10-year service life of their Scimitars drawing to an end by 1972/3; they also placed an order for 80 units in 1967. Both the Germans and the Thiarians were willing to pay $ 4.500.000 per plane. The fixed price of 3.500.000 dollars per plane for the French government still generated a net loss for Breguet, but with 300 orders, they decided to play vabanque and hope for more. With the price halved, the French government finally agreed to order 140 machines. At that point, the type was officially named Orfraie (Sea Eagle).

Deliveries of the Br.120M commenced in 1969 to the Aeronavale and were complete in 1972. All four operational squadrons achieved FOC in 1974. They were capable of carrying AN-22 free-fall nukes, but their main role was anti-shipping with the new Exocet missile; alternatively, the radar-guided Martel missile could be employed. For land-attack missions, all had built-in laser designators for LGBs or laser-guided AS.30 missiles. Of course, they could also employ up to 20 400kg-bombs, but at reduced internal fuel.
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The AdA’s 60 Br.120B Orfraies were supplied from 1970 through 1972, equipping three operational squadrons. They were cleared for the same armament as the Navy planes and frequently trained land-based anti-shipping missions; their initial main role was tactical interdiction with conventional munitions.
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The Marineflieger took delivery of 80 Br.120Ms (called Seeadler in German) between 1971 and 1973. All had folding wings, and during the 1970s and 1980s, most German Orfraie pilots acquired carrier qualification in joint exercises with French and US carriers. They were only equipped for anti-shipping missions and lacked laser designators; their main armament were Kormoran antiship missiles. Other than that, they were limited to dumb bombs. They achieved FOC in 1975.
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In 1969, the Thiarian left-wing government had a mood swing and decided to scrap the carriers in order to teach some manners to their politically unreliable admiralty; the Orfraie M order was cancelled. At the same time, they were looking for a replacement of their Air Force’s Vautours in the bomber and ECM role, and no less than 112 Br.120B Orfraies (land version with fixed wings) were ordered to equip six squadrons of 12 (7th, 10th, 18th, 26th, 27th and 34th) and an OCU (16th), plus reserves. An initial batch of 36 machines, half of them with dual steering, was delivered from France in 1973 and 1974; another 76 were license-built by Thiaria’s defense industry conglomerate SCI (privatized 1977) under the local designator B1S-1 between 1974 and 1977. Delivery of these planes to the Thiarians was opposed by the USA, but the French were eager to comply because the Thiarian Air Force’s wish list contained large numbers of virtually anything France’s defense industry had to offer – Dassault Mirage F.4s, Breguet Alpha Jets, and C.160 Transalls – making them a customer the French did not want to disappoint by any means. Thiarian Orfraies were named Ionadh (Gaelic: Mystery). They became Thiaria’s standard bomber for the rest of the century and could use the same weaponry as the French Orfraies, including Exocets for antiship duties. The first Thiarian Ionadh squadron reached FOC in 1976, the last in 1978.
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The Thiarian carrier project was revived when Brazil, in a move obviously directed against Thiaria’s left wing government, received two used Essex-class ships from the USA in 1971, complete with Crusader fighters and Skyhawk bombers. The Thiarians resumed work on one of their carriers in 1973, and the Navy ordered another 48 Ionadhs, all to be domestically license-built as the SCI T1S-2. Apart from their folding wings, they had the same equipment as the Air Force units. They were delivered in 1977 and 1978 and equipped three squadrons of 12 (2nd, 10th and 20th), one for each carrier and one serving as OCU. As the second carrier was never converted and eventually cannibalized, only one squadron at a time was embarked.
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By 1970, the plane was considered hot shit, capable of everything a Buccaneer or an Intruder could do, at twice the speed (only at altitude, of course; at sea level, performance was pretty much identical, which was impressive enough). Additional orders now kept coming in. The first was placed by the Royal Canadian Navy in 1971, after that country had decided to scrap its carrier in favour of a British-designed sea control ship. The Navy wanted to retain some maritime strike capability, and was authorized to raise a single 18-ship Orfraie squadron. 28 of the naval version Br.120M were ordered and delivered in 1973 and 1974, named Sea Eagle and painted in the RCN’s old-fashioned livery. They reached FOC in 1975. As Canada did not receive Harpoon missiles before 1983, Canadian Orfraies had to rely on shorter-ranged Bullpups during the first decade of their career. They differed from previous planes by having a fixed aerial refueling probe, which would become standard for subsequent Orfraies.
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The next customer was the Royal Norwegian Air Force, which wanted to establish a maritime strike capability around the North Cape. 24 of the land-based variant Br.120B were ordered in 1972 for delivery in 1975. The Norwegians named the plane the Havornen and equipped a single 15-ship squadron, achieving FOC in 1977. They were typically armed with domestically built Penguin missiles. They were the last Orfraies without aerial refueling probes.
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In 1971, HM government rejected South Africa’s request to purchase a second batch of 20 Buccaneers, and the French were happy to step in. The South Africans decided to raise two Orfraie squadrons (named Zeearend in Afrikaans) and ordered 32 machines of the land version Br.120B, which were delivered in 1975 and 1976 to equip two 9-ship squadrons and a 6-ship OCU. Unusually, they were not fitted for maritime strike missions (which were exclusively assigned to the Buccaneer force) but usually employed as a bomb truck in the bush wars. They had aerial refueling probes from the start, as had all later Orfraies.
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The third and last customer to use the Orfraie as a carrier based bomber was the Koko Kaijou. In 1970, their two WW-II-era Yonaga class fleet carriers operated a mix of F-11s and A-4s. In 1973, Koko decided to replace them with two 50.000-tonners carrying the best planes money could buy, at that time translating to F-14 fighters and Orfraie bombers. Two operational 18-ship squadrons and a 12-ship OCU were to be raised, and an order for 60 Orfraies was placed. They were delivered in 1976 through 1978 (30 as kits to be assembled in Koko, 30 locally license-built) and named Umiwashi (Sea Eagle). FOC was achieved in 1980, before the first new carrier was completed; Yonaga had to be refurbished at some expense to allow another five years of Orfraie operations. They typically carried ASM-1 missiles for the antiship role, but were fitted to deploy the full US-sourced bomb and missile inventory of the Koko Kaijou, including Bullpups, Standard ARMs, and LGBs.
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The final export customer was one of the largest. After the 1971 war against India, Pakistan needed replacement for the many Canberras and B-57s they had lost and purchased a first batch of 36 Br.120Bs in 1973. Deliveries commenced in 1976, and as soon as the first squadron was operational in 1977, a second batch of 48 was ordered to replace the remaining Canberras. When all 84 machines were delivered in 1980, Pakistan operated a total of five 12-ship squadrons including one OCU. They were tasked with interdict and strategic bombing missions, but not for anti-shipping; in that respect, they were identical to the South African machines.
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The last Pakistani machine concluded eleven years of continuous series production. Including Thiarian and Kokoan license-production, a total of 608 Orfraies were built – 454 in France, 124 in Thiaria and 30 in Koko. All operators considered the Br.120 a reliable machine with good range and a mean punch, but by 1980, it was no longer competitive on the world market. A developed version with M53-2 engines (55/85 kN thrust) was offered in 1979 to a variety of customers, but at that time, there was no requirement for the naval version, whilst the land-based version could not compete against the more modern Tornado and the more versatile F-18L.

The Orfraie racked up a long and active service record. Norway used them to patrol the Barents Sea throughout the cold war; when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1996, the Norwegians quickly retired their Orfraies without replacement. Their machines were overdue for a mid-life modernization at that time and were retired without ever having received one; 15 ex-Norwegian Orfraies were sold to Pakistan. The South African machines also were never modernized, in their case not for fiscal reasons, but due to the international arms embargo against the Apartheid regime. They were intensely employed in Namibia against the Angolans and also took part in the Rhodesian civil war. They proved hard to intercept for Angolan and Cuban MiGs; only five were lost, all to ground fire. Aanother five were lost to accidents, all of them after 1995. The survivors were retired in 2000 upon arrival of the first Hale Tempests in South Africa.

All Aeronavale machines were refitted in 1982 through 1984 with the latest ECM, internal jammers and flare launchers, allowing them to operate without external countermeasures pods. The Orfraie took part in hostilities against Libya during the 1970s and 1980s, Desert Storm in 1991, NATO intervention in the Yugoslav civil war, and several African conflicts in the 1980s and 1990s. The Aeronavale machines, which flew from the carriers Verdun, France, Charles de Gaulle and Richelieu, were replaced with Rafales starting in 1998; they were entirely withdrawn in 2001, after 32 years of faithful service. Eleven of eighty were lost in combat, nine in accidents and three were written off for other reasons.
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The AdA Orfraies, of which two full squadrons served in the Gulf war in the SEAD role with Armat missiles, were withdrawn from frontline service from 1994, at an average age of 25; as they were still in good shape, they were stored as spare donators for the navy’s Orfraies. Throughout their service, they had suffered only four combat losses, plus seven accidents. They were replaced with Mirage 4000Ds.
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German Orfraies were modernized with a slightly simplified countermeasures suite and a locally made electro-optical sensor including FLIR and laser designator. From 1984, they could operate the Jumbo ASM, Germany’s equivalent to Popeye, which could deliver a 750kg warhead against a heavily fortified target over a distance of 50 km. They were usually TV guided, but could be fitted with the guidance kit of the Kormoran for antiship service. Germany retired her Orfraies in 1998 through 2000 at an average age of 27 without replacement; antiship duties were assumed by Air Force Tornadoes. 35 airframes were sold to Koko for cannibalization.
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The Ionadh served with the Thiarian Air Force from 1974 to 2012; some of them were flying for 35 years. They received new radars and a unique ECM fit in the late 1980s, and about half of them were refit to fly SEAD missions with ARMAT missiles (7th, 18th and 27th Sqn). They also could employ Israeli Popeye missiles, which were acquired from 1992. They were active in Thiaria’s brief skirmish with Brazil in 1985, the Second Gulf War in 1990 and the New Portugal War of Independence in 1997. Seven were lost in the wars against Brazil, two in the Gulf War and ten in accidents. Those not fitted for SEAD were replaced from 1999 at an average age of 25 years by T3S-6 Siolpaire multirole fighters; the SEAD machines served a decade longer and were phased out from 2012 after being grounded due to material fatigue. They were slated to be replaced by the twin seat bomber variant of the Asarlai 5th generation fighters, which however did not become available prior to 2020, so single-seat Asarlais were substituted from 2016.
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The Thiarian Navy flew the Ionadh from the carriers Oirion, Treighdin, Andraimeide and Chros Deiscirt. They were used to shadow the Royal Navy during the Patagonian-Argentine war in 1982 and fought in the Second Gulf War of 1990, the New Portugal War of Independence in 1997 and the Madagaskar intervention in 2000. A total of thirteen were lost in action, but only one in an accident. Several of them used SM.39 missiles to sink Brazilian ships in 1985 and 1997. Three Thiarian Navy machines were the only Br.120 who ever scored kills in aerial combat, all of them using Magic II missiles against Brazilian Hurricane and Mirage III interceptors. They were modernized in a similar way as the Air Force machines in the late 1980s, and became the first operational launch platforms for the ANS supersonic anti-shipping missile in 1998. Due to material fatigue, they had to be phased out from 2001 after an average of 24 years of hard use and replaced with the final batch of naval T3S-7 Siolpaires.
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The Canadian Orfraies were only ever used in the anti-shipping role, carrying Harpoons from 1983. They were modernized in the mid-1980s to the same standard as the French machines. Like the Norwegians and Germans, the Canadians were eager to scrap them after the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1996 and cash in the peace dividend.
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Koko’s Uniwashis served for 28 years from the carriers Yashima and Kii. Due to the stress of constant carrier operations, they were quite worn out at the turn of the century and had to be kept operational by cannibalizing some ex-German airframes. In 2002, the first license-produced F/A-18E was delivered to the Koko Kaijou, which will serve till a domestic Japanese/Kokoan sixth-generation fighter will become available in the late 2020s. The last Uniwashi was retired in 2005. By that time, they had been adapted to Type 93 antiship missiles and Type 90 AAMs.
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The Pakistani Br.120s had some run-ins with the Russians alongside the Afghan border during the 1980s and were regularly called upon during various border skirmishes with India, losing 21 of their number, mostly to accidents. They received similar modernizations as the French Br.120s in the early 1990s, and in 1999, two squadrons were cleared for the nuclear strike role, although the presence of Pakistani free-fall nuclear bombs was never confirmed. Pakistan is still operating a sizeable force of about 50 Orfraies, cannibalizing the same number of phased out airframes to keep them aloft, among them a dozen ex-Norwegian. Another complex refurbishment including new ECM, jammers and targeting equipment was applied in 2010 through 2012.
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By 2022, the Pakistani Orfraies, all of them more than 40 years old, are the last of their kind in active service. Elsewhere, about 80 Orfraies are preserved, among them eleven in a flyable condition (three each in Thiaria and South Africa, two each in France and Koko, one in Canada).

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