SURVEY European MPAs Part 1
58 // SEPTEMBER 2017 #354 http://www.airforcesmonthly.com
deterrent (its core mission), but
the modernisation programme
has been delayed many times
for budgetary reasons.
The ATL 2 also partners the
Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.
When the vessel leaves harbour,
an aircraft is already under way
to check what it might encounter
over the following days. The
aircraft uses many bases for
this mission: Crete, Djibouti, and
Al Dhafra – the French base in
the United Arab Emirates. The
aircraft’s team of 14 aircrew and
six mechanics is said to be easy
to deploy to foreign countries.
The type also serves as a
counter-terrorist asset for
missions over land. It was also
used to locate French hostages
in Africa in 2010, when three ATL
2s operated from Niamey, Niger.
A year later they were based in
Italy to help French Mirages and
Rafales find targets in Libya. In
2013 up to six ATL 2s deployed
again in Africa to fight terrorists.
With the fleet heavily engaged,
serviceability has begun to
suffer and some major parts
are no longer produced. The
Aéronautique Navale (French
Navy’s air arm) currently has
between six and eight aircraft
operational. Adding to the
demand has been support
of the UK’s Royal Navy in
the absence of a Royal Air
Force MPA. French assets
are regularly sent to Scotland
and Norway, but details of the
deployments remain scarce.
The Atlantique 2 can now launch
the 500lb (227kg) GBU-12 Paveway
II and the smaller 250lb (120kg)
GBU-58 Paveway II laser-guided
bombs (LGBs). Current naval air
arm chief Bruno Thouvenin, a
former Super Étendard pilot, has
championed this capability, and
the Marine Nationale also wants
to integrate the dual-guidance
(GPS/laser) GBU-49 on the ATL 2.Against IS
Among the first French assets
to fight so-called Islamic
State (IS), the ATL 2’s initial
missions flew from Al Dhafra
in September 2014.
The US-led coalition then ruled
that bombing should be preceded
by a complete overview of the
areas around targets – and,
with no French UAVs available
in theatre, it was left to the
ATL 2 to take on the mission.
This involved adding a Joint
Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC)to the crew. Although most
pilots and tactical co-ordinators
(TACCOs) are trained for the role,
over Iraq and Syria they needed
to concentrate on their core tasks.
Using its electronic support
measures (ESM) and
communications intelligence
(COMINT) suites, the ATL 2 can
be used as an intelligence asset
that can fuse all the data on
board, beginning with the ‘Mark
One Eyeballs’ of the aircrew.
In a bid to reduce the transit
time from the UAE for counter-Above: A single 250lb GBU-58 Paveway II laser-guided bomb in the stores bay of an ATL 2. The larger 500lb GBU-12 is
another option and the navy plans to add the dual-mode GBU-49 to the aircraft’s armoury. Note also the MX-20HD
turret under the rear fuselage. Jean-Marc Tanguy