{"id":28232190,"date":"2026-10-16T10:06:58","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T08:06:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/acf-avion-de-combat-du-futur-france-national-fighter-bellanger-2026\/"},"modified":"2026-10-16T10:07:23","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T08:07:23","slug":"acf-avion-de-combat-du-futur-france-national-fighter-bellanger-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/fr\/acf-avion-de-combat-du-futur-france-national-fighter-bellanger-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"ACF Fighter: France Goes It Alone on the Rafale&rsquo;s Successor"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<style>.et_pb_title_container h1.entry-title { padding-top: 40px !important; }<\/style>\r\n\r\n\r\n<!-- mfsh:top -->\r\n\r\n<style>\r\n.mfsh-trigger{display:inline-flex;align-items:center;gap:10px;height:44px;padding:0 18px;margin:0 0 26px;border:2px solid 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The fighter that will one day replace the <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/rafale\/\">Rafale<\/a> will be French, designed and built at home, with partners invited only on France&rsquo;s terms. General J&eacute;r&ocirc;me Bellanger, chief of staff of the <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/air-forces\/french-air-and-space-force\/\">French Air and Space Force<\/a>, said so plainly before the National Assembly&rsquo;s defence committee on Wednesday, 14 October.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new aircraft now has a name, the <em>Avion de Combat du Futur<\/em> (ACF), and a target date: conventional combat missions by 2040. But the same hearing brought a sobering second message. Today&rsquo;s fleet is small, overworked and getting smaller, and only two new Rafales are due in 2027.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f4f6f9;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:18px 22px;margin:22px 0 28px;font-size:15px;line-height:1.7\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:700;color:#0d1117\">Quick Facts<\/p><ul style=\"margin:0;padding-left:18px\"><li><strong>Hearing:<\/strong> National Assembly defence committee, 14 October 2026<\/li><li><strong>Speaker:<\/strong> General J&eacute;r&ocirc;me Bellanger, chief of staff, French Air and Space Force<\/li><li><strong>Future fighter:<\/strong> Avion de Combat du Futur (ACF), now a national programme<\/li><li><strong>Targets:<\/strong> Conventional missions by 2040; carry the ASN4G nuclear missile by 2050<\/li><li><strong>Fleet at end of 2025:<\/strong> 184 combat aircraft: 112 Rafales, 50 Mirage 2000Ds, 22 Mirage 2000-5Fs (Defence24)<\/li><li><strong>Fleet use:<\/strong> More than 15% above the planned rate<\/li><li><strong>New Rafales in 2027:<\/strong> Two<\/li><li><strong>2027 Rafale budget:<\/strong> &euro;4.4bn in commitments, &euro;1.8bn in payments, including the F5 standard<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">After FCAS, a French Fighter<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Future Combat Air System was meant to give France, Germany and Spain one shared next-generation fighter. It fell apart in June 2026, after years of disputes between Dassault Aviation and Airbus over specifications and industrial leadership. Since then the question in Paris has been what comes next.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bellanger gave the answer. According to Defense News, he told deputies that the work now under way will prepare the birth of the ACF &ldquo;as a national program.&rdquo; France remains open to cooperation, he said, but &ldquo;within different frameworks and which won&rsquo;t be structural to the birth of this aircraft.&rdquo; In other words: partners are welcome to join, but they will not be allowed to hold the programme hostage again.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The timeline is driven by nuclear deterrence. The French air force carries part of France&rsquo;s nuclear arsenal, and the Rafale&rsquo;s successor must carry the future ASN4G hypersonic nuclear cruise missile by 2050. To get there, Bellanger said, the aircraft must already be flying conventional missions by 2040.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #1565c0;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7;display:flex;gap:20px;align-items:flex-start\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/general-jerome-bellanger-french-air-space-force-chief.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"flex-shrink:0\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/general-jerome-bellanger-french-air-space-force-chief.jpg\" alt=\"General J&eacute;r&ocirc;me Bellanger\" style=\"width:96px;height:96px;border-radius:50%;object-fit:cover;object-position:center;display:block;border:2px solid #ddd\"><\/a><div><em>&ldquo;Overusing the fleet will no longer be enough tomorrow.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>General J&eacute;r&ocirc;me Bellanger<\/strong> &mdash; Chief of Staff, French Air and Space Force, before the National Assembly defence committee, 14 October 2026 (as reported by AeroTime)<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He insisted that the FCAS years &ldquo;haven&rsquo;t been wasted&rdquo;. Work on the aircraft, drones, stealth, connectivity and the combat cloud carries over. France also wants to keep working with Germany on the combat cloud, the data network that will tie aircraft and drones together, so that allied forces can still fight side by side.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dassault has been ready for this moment for a long time. Its chief executive, &Eacute;ric Trappier, has said that Dassault, engine maker Safran and electronics firm Thales have all the know-how needed, and could build the new fighter for well below &euro;50 billion. Bellanger also had a pointed word for the rival British, Italian and Japanese GCAP programme: in his view it aims for &ldquo;a different kind of aircraft, it&rsquo;s almost a strategic bomber.&rdquo;<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">184 Jets for a Nuclear Power<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The second half of the hearing was less comfortable. According to Defence24, France ended 2025 with 184 combat aircraft: 112 Rafales, 50 <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/mirage-2000\/\">Mirage 2000Ds<\/a> and 22 Mirage 2000-5Fs. That fleet has to cover nuclear deterrence, the defence of French airspace, operations abroad and preparation for high-intensity war, all at once.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bellanger said the jets are already being flown more than 15% above their planned rate. Before the summer of 2026, about 80% of France&rsquo;s fighters were committed at the same time to a nuclear deterrence exercise, operations in the Middle East, NATO&rsquo;s eastern flank, an exercise in C&ocirc;te d&rsquo;Ivoire and permanent air policing. Defence24 reports that he set those numbers against Greece, with about 240 combat aircraft, and Germany, with 235.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px;width:100%\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" width=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/mirage-2000-5f-french-air-force-retirement-2027.jpg\" alt=\"French Air Force Mirage 2000-5F in flight\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;max-width:100%;display:block\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">A French Mirage 2000-5F. More Mirage 2000s are due to leave service as only two new Rafales arrive in 2027. Photo: Colin Cooke Photo \/ CC BY-SA 2.0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Two Rafales in 2027<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 2027 budget includes &euro;4.4 billion in commitment authorisations and &euro;1.8 billion in payment appropriations for Rafale procurement and modernisation, including development of the F5 standard. Even so, the air force expects only two new Rafales next year, while more Mirage 2000s leave service.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Rafale F5, due in the mid-2030s, will be the bridge to the ACF. It is set to bring the first building blocks of the future fighter, including a new engine, new sensors and the Stratus RS missile for suppressing enemy air defences. Bellanger argued that the next military programming law must look again at the overall size of the fighter fleet.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Drones will fill some of the gap. France expects its first long-range one-way attack drones, MBDA&rsquo;s Deluge, in summer 2027. Bellanger described a future where waves of cheap, disposable drones wear down enemy air defences first, opening a path for crewed jets and uncrewed aircraft to strike deep. It is a vision that will need the ACF, and many more aircraft than France has today.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 6px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/beQi4wXu3E0\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin:0 0 24px;font-style:italic\">Excerpt from General Bellanger&rsquo;s hearing before the National Assembly defence committee, posted by deputy Catherine Hervieu (in French).<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Sources: Defense News; AeroTime; Defence24; French National Assembly<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<!-- mfsh:bottom -->\r\n\r\n<button type=\"button\" class=\"mfsh-trigger mfsh-bottom\" data-mfsh-placement=\"bottom\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><svg><use href=\"#mfsh-i-share\"\/><\/svg>Share this story<\/button>\r\n\r\n<!-- \/mfsh:bottom -->\r\n\r\n\r\n<style>.mfq{margin:34px 0 8px}.mfq h2{font:26px\/1.3 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117;padding-top:22px;margin:0 0 6px}.mfq .qa details{border-top:1px solid #5C91FF;margin:0;padding:0}.mfq .qa details:last-of-type{border-bottom:1px solid #e2e7ee}.mfq .qa summary{cursor:pointer;list-style:none;display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;gap:16px;padding:22px 26px;font:18px\/1.7 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117}.mfq .qa summary::-webkit-details-marker{display:none}.mfq .qa summary::after{content:\"+\";font:24px Helvetica,sans-serif;color:#3568e0;flex:0 0 auto}.mfq .qa details[open] summary::after{content:\"\\2013\"}.mfq .qa details:hover summary{color:#3568e0}.mfq .qa .a{font:16px\/1.7 \"Gilroy regular\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#454e5e;padding:0 26px 24px}.mfq .qa .a a{color:#3568e0}@media(max-width:680px){.mfq .qa summary{padding:18px 14px;font-size:17px}.mfq .qa .a{padding:0 14px 20px}}<\/style>\r\n\r\n\r\n<section class=\"mfq\"><h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2><div class=\"qa\"><details open><summary>What is the ACF fighter?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The ACF, or Avion de Combat du Futur, is France&rsquo;s planned successor to the Rafale. After the Franco-German-Spanish FCAS programme collapsed in June 2026, France decided to develop the ACF as a national programme, with foreign partners welcome only on terms that do not shape the aircraft&rsquo;s core design.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>When will France&rsquo;s ACF fighter enter service?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">General J&eacute;r&ocirc;me Bellanger told the National Assembly on 14 October 2026 that the ACF should fly conventional missions by 2040. It must also be able to carry France&rsquo;s future ASN4G hypersonic nuclear cruise missile by 2050.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Why did France leave FCAS?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">France and Germany agreed to scrap the FCAS fighter project in June 2026 after years of disputes between Dassault Aviation and Airbus over the aircraft&rsquo;s specifications and over who would lead the industrial work. France then chose to build its next fighter on its own.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>How many combat aircraft does the French Air and Space Force have?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">According to Defence24&rsquo;s report on the 14 October 2026 hearing, the French Air and Space Force had 184 combat aircraft at the end of 2025: 112 Rafales, 50 Mirage 2000Ds and 22 Mirage 2000-5Fs. General Bellanger said the fleet is being used more than 15% above its planned rate.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>How many Rafales will France receive in 2027?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The French Air and Space Force expects only two new Rafales in 2027, while more Mirage 2000s are retired. The 2027 budget includes &euro;4.4 billion in commitment authorisations and &euro;1.8 billion in payment appropriations for Rafale procurement and modernisation.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>What is the Rafale F5?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The Rafale F5 is the next major standard of the Rafale, due in the mid-2030s. It is meant to bring early building blocks of the future ACF fighter, including a new engine, new sensors and the Stratus RS missile for suppressing enemy air defences.<\/div><\/details><\/div><\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What is the ACF fighter?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The ACF, or Avion de Combat du Futur, is France\u2019s planned successor to the Rafale. After the Franco-German-Spanish FCAS programme collapsed in June 2026, France decided to develop the ACF as a national programme, with foreign partners welcome only on terms that do not shape the aircraft\u2019s core design.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"When will France\u2019s ACF fighter enter service?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"General J\u00e9r&ocirc;me Bellanger told the National Assembly on 14 October 2026 that the ACF should fly conventional missions by 2040. It must also be able to carry France\u2019s future ASN4G hypersonic nuclear cruise missile by 2050.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Why did France leave FCAS?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"France and Germany agreed to scrap the FCAS fighter project in June 2026 after years of disputes between Dassault Aviation and Airbus over the aircraft\u2019s specifications and over who would lead the industrial work. France then chose to build its next fighter on its own.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"How many combat aircraft does the French Air and Space Force have?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"According to Defence24\u2019s report on the 14 October 2026 hearing, the French Air and Space Force had 184 combat aircraft at the end of 2025: 112 Rafales, 50 Mirage 2000Ds and 22 Mirage 2000-5Fs. General Bellanger said the fleet is being used more than 15% above its planned rate.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"How many Rafales will France receive in 2027?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The French Air and Space Force expects only two new Rafales in 2027, while more Mirage 2000s are retired. 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It is meant to bring early building blocks of the future ACF fighter, including a new engine, new sensors and the Stratus RS missile for suppressing enemy air defences.\"}}]}<\/script><div style=\"background:#f0f4ff;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:16px 20px;margin:32px 0 8px\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:600;color:#333\">Related Posts<\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/rafale-f5-dga-first-contracts-fcas-collapse-2026\/\">Rafale F5: France Orders the First Contracts After FCAS Died<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/germany-gcap-talks-sixth-generation-fighter-politico-2026\/\">Germany Eyes GCAP: Berlin Explores Britain&rsquo;s Sixth-Gen Fighter<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/rafale-loyal-wingman-hypairion-france-2028-mirage-2000-ai-testbed\/\">Rafale Loyal Wingman: France Plans First Crewed-Uncrewed Flight in 2028<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/dassault-mirage-4000-super-fighter-never-sold-rafale\/\">The Beautiful French Fighter Nobody Would Buy<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>France will build the Rafale&rsquo;s successor, the ACF, as a national programme. Its air chief also warned of a fleet of just 184 combat jets.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":28231999,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[664,670],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28232190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-military-aviation","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>ACF Fighter: France Goes Solo on the Rafale Successor | MiGFlug<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"France will build its ACF fighter, the Rafale successor, as a national programme after FCAS. 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