Dassault Etendard IV

Dassault Etendard IVM
Description
Role	Carrier-borne strike fighter
Crew	One, pilot
First Flight	May 21 1958
In Service	January 18 1962
Manufacturer	Dassault
Dimensions
Length	14.40 m	47 ft 3 in
Wingspan	9.60 m	31 ft 6 in
Height	3.79 m	12 ft 6 in
Wing area	29 m²	312 ft²
Weights
Empty	5,900 kg	13,000 lb
Loaded	8,170 kg	17,974 lb
Maximum takeoff	10,200 kg	22,485 lb
Powerplant
Engines	1x SNECMA Atar 8B
Thrust	43.16 kN	9,700 lb
Performance
Maximum speed	1,099 km/h	683 mph
Ferry Range	3,300 km	2,062 miles
Service ceiling	15,500 m	50,850 ft
Rate of climb	6,000 m/min	19,685 ft/min
Wing loading	282kg/m²	57 lb/ft²
Thrust/Weight	5.28 N/kg	1.85 lbf/lb
Avionics
Avionics
Armament
Guns	2x 30 mm cannons
Stores	1,360 kg (3,000 lb) of bombs and rockets

The Dassault Etendard IV was a French carrier-borne "strike" fighter in service with the French Navy.

The Etendard's history begins with two design requirements in the early 1950s. One was for a light jet fighter for the French Air Force, the other for a light fighter to serve as standard equipment with NATO air forces. Dassault used variations of the same basic design to produce prototypes for both these specifications, designated the Etendard II and Etendard VI respectively, neither of which led to any orders. At the same time, the company evolved a larger and more powerful variant (originally designated Mystère XXIV) as a private venture.

Able to generate interest from the Navy, Dassault built a prototype navalised version, first demonstrated to the service in 1958 and which resulted in an order for 69 fighter aircraft, designated Etendard IVM and 21 reconnaissance versions designated Etendard IVP. From 1962, these began to be deployed aboard the new French aircraft carriers FS Foch and FS Clemenceau.

Performance of the Etendard IV was never spectacular, and in the 1970s it was clear that a replacement should be sought. For some time, this was hoped to be a navalised version of the SEPECAT Jaguar, the Jaguar M, but as the various political problems of the joint Anglo-French effort dragged out development, Dassault stepped in with an uprated version of the Etendard, dubbed Super Etendard. The last of the original Etendard IVMs were withdrawn in 1991, although a handful of IVPs remain operational in 2004.

Related content
Related Development	Etendard II - Etendard VI - Super Etendard
Similar Aircraft	A-7 Corsair II - Blackburn Buccaneer
Related Lists	List of military aircraft of France - List of fighter aircraft

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