And the rafale is better. It sells better, too, exports better, has better dogfighting capabilities, etc…
France struggled until 2015 to find international buyers for the Rafale, while exports were of utmost importance to refinance the development that France so far had to carry on their own, while the Eurofighter Typhoon has four strong domestic markets. France is pushing the Rafale aggressively. Still, there are 250 Rafales flying vs 600 EF Typhoons.
The way I see it: France wants a navalised version, which all the others don’t need, so the issue must be resolved why all need to fund the wish of one. That could be resolved, as France also has no interest in repeating the vastly expensive ego trip that was the Rafale and wants/needs a partner instead.
Dassault wanting 80% share and clear leadership on top of that however doesn’t help but just conveys the picture that France wants everything from the project while the others may pay for it. That’s not a compromise you spoke about earlier.
France struggled until 2015 to find international buyers for the Rafale, while exports were of utmost importance to refinance the development that France so far had to carry on their own, while the Eurofighter Typhoon has four strong domestic markets. France is pushing the Rafale aggressively. Still, there are 250 Rafales flying vs 600 EF Typhoons.
The way I see it: France wants a navalised version, which all the others don’t need, so the issue must be resolved why all need to fund the wish of one. That could be resolved, as France also has no interest in repeating the vastly expensive ego trip that was the Rafale and wants/needs a partner instead.
Dassault wanting 80% share and clear leadership on top of that however doesn’t help but just conveys the picture that France wants everything from the project while the others may pay for it. That’s not a compromise you spoke about earlier.