Posted on 04/01/2017 5:00:49 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
A French Cold War nuclear bomber has begun a four-day journey to its new home at an English air museum.
The 31-tonne Dassault Mirage IVA has been donated to the Yorkshire Air Museum, at Elvington near York, by the French government.
It is the only Mirage IV aircraft to be given to an independent museum and the only one outside France.
The 77ft-long (23m) plane is travelling 527 miles (848km) by road and sea and is due to arrive on 30 March. The Mirage IV was built as part of France's independent nuclear deterrent during the Cold War.
Around 60 were built and entered service in 1964 and subsequently served as conventional strike and reconnaissance aircraft during conflicts including the Gulf War and Afghanistan.
It was retired from service in 2005.
The plane is the only Mirage IV aircraft to be given to an independent museum and the only one outside France
Negotiations to bring the aircraft to Elvington began in 2007, but the formal announcement of the gift was not made until August 2016.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
Hmmm....How come it can’t be flown there? 525 miles by roads and boat?
It’s probably in pieces...
I thought Lockheed was the only one that experimented with nuclear powered bombers.
Oh, they meant capable of carrying nuclear weapons, but usually used with conventional weapons.
31 tons??? The empty weight for B-17 = 36,000lb, and F-18 = 32,000lb nearly identical? But 31 tons?
It’s just a mirage.
General characteristics
Crew: two: pilot & navigator/bombardier
Length: 23.49 m (77 ft 1 in)
Wingspan: 11.85 m (38 ft 10½ in)
Height: 5.40 m (17 ft 8½ in)
Wing area: 78.00 m² (839.6 ft²)
Empty weight: 14,500 kg (31,967 lb)
Loaded weight: 31,600 kg (69,700 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 33,475 kg (73,800 lb)
Powerplant: two × SNECMA Atar 9K-50[62] turbojets
Dry thrust: 49.03 kN (11,023 lbf) each
Thrust with afterburner: 70.61 kN (15,873 lbf) each
A similar plane, the British Vulcan, was used in Thunderball.
There it is, the max take off weights and empty weights of each make more sense. The story is siting the max weights but I’m sure they’re not shipping a fully fueled Mirage IV complete with ordinance.
yes and no respectively. reporters could screw up a steelball with a rubber mallet
I believe the Vulcans were last used in the Falklands War.
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