Outstanding. Such beautiful aircraft and their versatility between the 2-seaters and single seaters and their omni role capabilities as well as their weapons loads, advanced AESA and SPECTRA lol my goodness, so much packed in a lethal platform. I hope the EAF also gets its second order finalized for another 30 aircraft on top of the existing 24.
Yes, they're in my opinion the best fighters in the world today. Also amongst the most beautiful (although my favorite will always remain the Mirage-2000)
The combination of range, payload, weapons it carries, the RBE 2 AESA's capabilities, OSF, SPECTRA, the extremely ergonomic cockpit, excess thrust available to the pilot and Dassault's best in class FBW mean that the Rafale truly is the most versatile and capable fighter.
This infographic is from Janes and as one can see, the payload and range figures for the Rafale when viewed overall prove it's the most well rounded fighter.
Looking at the figures above, the Super Hornet is great in terms of range and payload with it's 2 X F-414 engines. But it lacks the agility of the Rafale C thanks to the much higher empty weight it lugs around being a heavy naval fighter.
Which is why if ADA, HAL and DRDO get it right, the Twin Engine Deck Based Fighter (TEDBF) with 2 X F-414 engines will be a beast in terms of range and payload. And given the similarity in design to the Rafale and how it will get a FBW derived from the excellent one developed for the Tejas, it should be (if everything works out) a fabulous fighter.
