Dassault Aviation has revealed more detailed plans for increasing production rates of its flagship product, Rafale fighters, the order backlog for which as of today stands at 220 aircraft, with expected agreement signing with India for 114 aircraft and Ukraine for 100 aircraft.
According to company CEO Eric Trappier, in 2026 Rafale fighter production rates will have quite modest growth, just 28 aircraft per year, two more than in 2025 when 26 fighters were manufactured, Flightglobal reports.
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At the same time, Dassault Aviation is working toward achieving so-called pace 4, the fourth level of aircraft production tempo, meaning four fighters per month or 48 per year.
As the company notes, Rafale fighter production increase proceeds gradually. To achieve production of four aircraft per month at Mérignac [this is the final assembly line], everything must come together at the right time, Trappier noted.
Dassault Aviation is expected to fully produce four fighters per month in three years (approximately 2028-2029), while reaching pace 5, meaning five aircraft per month or 60 per year, is planned by 2030, with this being "if necessary."
Regarding how Rafale production rates are growing, if last year this was 26 aircraft exceeding the plan by one aircraft, then in 2024 they produced five fewer, 21, also one more than planned, but this was a large jump upward compared to 13 aircraft made in 2023.
At the same time, it would be incorrect to say France is not working on increasing Rafale production. Last year, Dassault opened new proprietary production facilities for the first time since the 1970s.
Meanwhile, Safran from this year promised to increase component production for M88 engines installed on Rafale, with new production facilities also scheduled to become operational from 2029.
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