During the France-Croatia bilateral held in Paris, Croatia’s Defense Minister Ivan Anušić announced an upgrade program for the Rafale F.3R fighter bombers.
As known, Croatia purchased twelve Dassault Rafale F.3R fighter bombers from France, previously owned by Armée de l’Air et de l’Espace, as part of a €999 million program.
In addition to the aircraft, Croatia purchased a munition package consisting of MBDA’s MICA IR and RF air-to-air missiles, and SAFRAN’s AASM Hammer air-to-ground weapons.
In November 2021, Croatia purchased 10 single-seater C and two two-seater B aircraft, maintaining the operational capabilities of the originals.
The delivery of these aircraft by Dassault Aviation was completed this spring; the Rafale, before being transferred to Croatia, underwent review and maintenance.
Now, Defense Minister of the Republic of Croatia Ivan Anušić has signed a Letter of Intent with his French counterpart Catherine Vautrin to upgrade the Rafale F3.R to the latest F4.1 standard, operational from 2023.
The new F4 standard
The Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA) with the Armée de l’Air et de l’Espace, in collaboration with the industry, is working on releasing the new F4.2 standard; each new standard corresponds to an improvement and/or capability of the systems and use of new weaponry.
The motivations for this abrupt intervention by Croatia could lie in the fact that France sold Serbia an equal number of newly built Rafale and F4 standard in the summer of 2024 as part of a program worth around €3 billion, including ammunition, simulators, and technical-logistical support.
With the Rafale, the Croatian Air Force has replaced the remaining MiG-21 models and secured the defense of national airspace, participating in NATO air policing and surveillance missions in support of Eastern European and Icelandic allied countries.
