{"id":31772817,"date":"2026-11-08T11:00:19","date_gmt":"2026-11-08T10:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/sncaso-so-4050-vautour-french-twin-jet-bomber-night-fighter-israel\/"},"modified":"2026-11-08T11:11:20","modified_gmt":"2026-11-08T10:11:20","slug":"sncaso-so-4050-vautour-french-twin-jet-bomber-night-fighter-israel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/fr\/sncaso-so-4050-vautour-french-twin-jet-bomber-night-fighter-israel\/","title":{"rendered":"SO.4050 Vautour: France&rsquo;s Twin-Jet Bomber That Fought for Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.et_pb_title_container h1.entry-title { padding-top: 40px !important; }<\/style>\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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Nobody announced it. A year later, at an air display in August 1958, the Israeli public finally saw what had arrived: the <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/sud-aviation-vautour\/\">Sud Aviation Vautour<\/a>, France&rsquo;s big, versatile <em>vautour<\/em>, or vulture.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>It is one of the forgotten jets of the 1950s. In France it was a bomber, an all-weather night fighter and a reconnaissance platform that never fired a shot in anger. In Israel it became a long-range strike jet that fought in the Six-Day War and the War of Attrition, and even shot down a Hawker Hunter.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>One airframe, three very different careers. Here is how the SNCASO S.O. 4050 Vautour went from a French multi-role gamble to one of the most important weapons in the young Israeli Air Force.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f4f6f9;border:1px solid #e2e7ee;padding:18px 22px;margin:22px 0 26px\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:700;color:#0d1117\">Quick Facts<\/p><ul style=\"margin:0;padding-left:18px\"><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Type:<\/strong> SNCASO (Sud Aviation) S.O. 4050 Vautour, twin-jet bomber, attack aircraft and all-weather fighter<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>First flight:<\/strong> 16 October 1952 (IIN prototype)<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Engines:<\/strong> Two SNECMA Atar 101 turbojets in underwing pods<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Variants:<\/strong> IIA single-seat attack, IIB two-seat bomber, IIN two-seat all-weather fighter<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Built:<\/strong> 149, including 3 prototypes and 6 pre-production aircraft<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Operators:<\/strong> France (112 aircraft) and Israel (around 30)<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Combat:<\/strong> Israel only: from 1959, Six-Day War 1967, War of Attrition<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Retired:<\/strong> Israel early 1972; France end of the 1970s<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">One airframe, three jobs<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>In June 1951, the Arm\u00e9e de l&rsquo;Air asked for a single jet that could work as a bomber, a low-level attack aircraft and an all-weather interceptor. It was a tall order for an industry still rebuilding after the German occupation. SNCASO answered by shrinking and reworking its experimental S.O. 4000 bomber design into a new twin-jet, the S.O. 4050.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The first prototype, a two-seat all-weather fighter, flew on 16 October 1952. During early testing a prototype went supersonic in a shallow dive, an eye-catching result for a jet of its size. The single-seat attack prototype followed in December 1953, and the two-seat bomber prototype flew on 5 December 1954.<\/p>\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\"><div><em>&ldquo;It would be fair to claim that in the early 1950s the Vautour was the most promising twin-jet warplane in Western Europe.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>Bill Gunston and Peter Gilchrist<\/strong> &mdash; Aviation historians, <em>Jet Bombers<\/em> (Osprey, 1993)<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The layout was distinctive. A shoulder-mounted 35-degree swept wing carried two SNECMA Atar turbojets in pods underneath. The landing gear was of the bicycle type, with main wheels in tandem under the fuselage and small outrigger wheels in the engine nacelles. That left the belly free for a large internal weapons bay.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Production came in three variants with a high degree of commonality. The <strong>Vautour IIA<\/strong> was a single-seat attack aircraft with cannon and bombs. The <strong>IIB<\/strong> was a two-seat bomber with a glazed nose for the navigator-bombardier. The <strong>IIN<\/strong> was a two-seat all-weather fighter with radar in the nose, the night fighter of the family.<\/p>\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\/11\/vautour-iia-single-seat-savigny-les-beaune.jpg\" alt=\"Single-seat Vautour IIA attack aircraft, the second production Vautour, preserved at the Chateau de Savigny-les-Beaune collection\" 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\">The single-seat Vautour IIA, the version Israel flew in the largest numbers. This one, the second production Vautour, first flew in 1956 and served with the French Air Force before preservation at Savigny-l\u00e8s-Beaune. Photo: Alan Wilson \/ CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">France&rsquo;s stop-gap bomber<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The French Air Force had planned on hundreds of Vautours, but the order shrank sharply. In the end it took 112 aircraft, and it did not want the single-seat IIA at all, using a few for training and offering the rest for export. The IIN equipped the all-weather fighter squadrons of the 30e Escadre, while the IIB bomber flew with the 92e Escadre de Bombardement.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The bomber version had real limits. It lacked radar and the advanced navigation and attack systems of its contemporaries, which tied it to clear-weather daylight missions, a serious handicap over Europe. As an interceptor it was soon overtaken by the <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/mirage-iii\/\">Mirage III<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>For a short time the Vautour IIB served as a stop-gap carrier for France&rsquo;s first nuclear weapons, but the strategic role soon passed to the much faster <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/mirage-iv\/\">Dassault Mirage IV<\/a>. Many IIBs were turned into reconnaissance aircraft. The last French Vautours left frontline service at the end of the 1970s, with a handful kept on for trials and target towing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 8px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Ybwo1qFEzAE\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;font-style:italic;margin:0 0 24px\">Archive footage of a French Vautour IIB during a naval exercise off Corsica in 1963.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The vulture moves east<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>Israel saw the Vautour very differently. In early 1957 the <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/air-forces\/israeli-air-force\/\">Israeli Air Force<\/a> chose it to replace its ageing <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/de-havilland-mosquito\/\">de Havilland Mosquitos<\/a> in the long-range attack role, and as an answer to the Soviet-built <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/il-28-beagle\/\">Ilyushin Il-28<\/a> bombers that Egypt had acquired. France and Israel were working closely together on defence at the time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Around 30 Vautours went to Israel, most of them the single-seat IIAs France did not need, plus a small number of IIB bombers and IIN night fighters. Two squadrons flew them: 110 Squadron at <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/air-bases\/ramat-david\/\">Ramat David<\/a> with the attack and bomber versions, and 119 Squadron at Tel Nof with the IIN.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #d32f2f;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7\"><div><em>&ldquo;Israel's most important delivery system at the time&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>Sylvia K. Crosbie<\/strong> &mdash; Historian, <em>A Tacit Alliance: France and Israel from Suez to the Six Day War<\/em><\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The reason was reach. The deliveries arrived quietly, one or two aircraft a month, and gave Israel its first jet able to strike most targets in Egypt. In Israeli service a Vautour typically carried 30 mm cannon, up to 3,000 kg of bombs in its internal bay and underwing rocket pods, a heavy punch for a jet that had started life as a French compromise.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Israeli skies suited the jet. Clear weather and daylight operations meant the lack of advanced navigation equipment hurt far less than it did in Europe. The IIN night fighters later moved into attack, reconnaissance and electronic warfare roles, and in the last role they were used to jam Egyptian air defences.<\/p>\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\/11\/vautour-israeli-air-force-formation-beersheba-1964.jpg\" alt=\"A large formation of Israeli Air Force Vautour jets flying over Beersheba during the 1964 Independence Day parade\" 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\">Israeli Air Force Vautours fly in formation over Beersheba during the Independence Day parade of April 1964. Photo: Fritz Cohen \/ public domain, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Six days in June<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The Vautour&rsquo;s combat career began as early as 1959 and peaked in June 1967. During the Six-Day War, Israeli Vautours struck air bases across the region, including raids deep into western Iraq against the H-3 airfield.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Over H-3 the bombers met Iraqi <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/hawker-hunter\/\">Hawker Hunters<\/a>. On 6 June 1967, according to Wikipedia&rsquo;s account, Captain Ben-Zion Zohar shot one down, the only air-to-air victory ever credited to a Vautour. The Hunters had their revenge: two Vautours were brought down by Hunter cannon fire.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 8px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fawnSs_Hq4U\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;font-style:italic;margin:0 0 24px\">Archive footage of Israeli Air Force Vautours, the long-range strike jets of 110 and 119 Squadrons.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Losses mounted over the years of fighting that followed, and newer American types were arriving. The <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/a-4-skyhawk\/\">A-4 Skyhawk<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/aircraft\/f-4-phantom-ii\/\">F-4 Phantom<\/a> took over the Vautour&rsquo;s roles, and Israel retired the type in early 1972.<\/p>\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\/11\/vautour-iib-33-big-brother-israeli-air-force-museum.jpg\" alt=\"Vautour IIB number 33 Big Brother with glazed bomb-aimer nose on display at the Israeli Air Force Museum at Hatzerim\" 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\">Vautour IIB number 33, &ldquo;Big Brother&rdquo;, at the Israeli Air Force Museum at Hatzerim. The glazed nose housed the navigator-bombardier. Photo: Oren Rozen \/ CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Where to see one today<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>Total production came to 149 aircraft, including three prototypes and six pre-production machines. Survivors are scattered across France, with examples at Mont\u00e9limar, the Mus\u00e9e de l&rsquo;Air et de l&rsquo;Espace collection, Ch\u00e2teaudun, Toulouse and the Rozanoff museum at <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/air-bases\/ba-118-mont-de-marsan\/\">Mont-de-Marsan<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Three former Israeli Vautours, one of each variant, are on display at the Israeli Air Force Museum at <a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/air-bases\/hatzerim\/\">Hatzerim<\/a>. Among them is IIB number 33, nicknamed &ldquo;Big Brother&rdquo;.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 8px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/eQPuCvIDTXg\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;font-style:italic;margin:0 0 24px\">A French Vautour IIN filmed over French Polynesia, far from the European skies the type was designed for.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The Vautour never got the engines or the avionics it deserved, and in France it lived in the shadow of the Mirage. But for fifteen years in the Middle East, the French vulture was the long arm of the Israeli Air Force. Not bad for a stop-gap.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p><em>Sources: Wikipedia (Sud Aviation Vautour; SNCASO SO-4050 Vautour, French edition), Jewish Virtual Library (IAF Aircraft Inventory: Sud-Ouest S.O. 4050 Vautour), Wikimedia Commons<\/em><\/p>\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 was the SNCASO S.O. 4050 Vautour?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The S.O. 4050 Vautour was a French twin-jet combat aircraft built by SNCASO, later Sud Aviation, in three versions: the single-seat IIA attack jet, the two-seat IIB bomber and the two-seat IIN all-weather fighter. The first prototype flew on 16 October 1952, and 149 were built in total.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>When did the Vautour first fly?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The first Vautour prototype, a two-seat all-weather fighter, flew on 16 October 1952 with Atar 101 engines. The single-seat attack prototype followed in December 1953 and the bomber prototype on 5 December 1954. A prototype exceeded Mach 1 in a shallow dive during early testing.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Did the Vautour see combat?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The Vautour never saw combat with the French Air Force, but the Israeli Air Force used it in action from 1959 onwards, including in the Six-Day War of 1967 and the War of Attrition. Israeli Vautours flew bombing, strafing, reconnaissance and electronic warfare missions.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Did a Vautour ever shoot down another aircraft?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Yes, once. During Israeli raids on the Iraqi H-3 airfield in June 1967, a Vautour flown by Captain Ben-Zion Zohar shot down an Iraqi Hawker Hunter, the only air-to-air victory credited to the type. Iraqi Hunters in turn shot down two Vautours with cannon fire.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>How many Vautours did Israel operate?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Israel received around 30 Vautours, mostly single-seat IIA attack aircraft that France did not need, plus small numbers of IIB bombers and IIN night fighters. They served with 110 Squadron at Ramat David and 119 Squadron at Tel Nof until the type was retired in early 1972.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>What replaced the Vautour?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">In France, the Dassault Mirage IV took over the nuclear bomber role and the Mirage III outclassed the Vautour as an interceptor; the last French Vautours left frontline service at the end of the 1970s. In Israel, the A-4 Skyhawk and F-4 Phantom replaced it, and it was retired in early 1972.<\/div><\/details><\/div><\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What was the SNCASO S.O. 4050 Vautour?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The S.O. 4050 Vautour was a French twin-jet combat aircraft built by SNCASO, later Sud Aviation, in three versions: the single-seat IIA attack jet, the two-seat IIB bomber and the two-seat IIN all-weather fighter. The first prototype flew on 16 October 1952, and 149 were built in total.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"When did the Vautour first fly?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The first Vautour prototype, a two-seat all-weather fighter, flew on 16 October 1952 with Atar 101 engines. The single-seat attack prototype followed in December 1953 and the bomber prototype on 5 December 1954. A prototype exceeded Mach 1 in a shallow dive during early testing.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Did the Vautour see combat?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The Vautour never saw combat with the French Air Force, but the Israeli Air Force used it in action from 1959 onwards, including in the Six-Day War of 1967 and the War of Attrition. Israeli Vautours flew bombing, strafing, reconnaissance and electronic warfare missions.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Did a Vautour ever shoot down another aircraft?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Yes, once. During Israeli raids on the Iraqi H-3 airfield in June 1967, a Vautour flown by Captain Ben-Zion Zohar shot down an Iraqi Hawker Hunter, the only air-to-air victory credited to the type. Iraqi Hunters in turn shot down two Vautours with cannon fire.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"How many Vautours did Israel operate?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Israel received around 30 Vautours, mostly single-seat IIA attack aircraft that France did not need, plus small numbers of IIB bombers and IIN night fighters. They served with 110 Squadron at Ramat David and 119 Squadron at Tel Nof until the type was retired in early 1972.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What replaced the Vautour?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"In France, the Dassault Mirage IV took over the nuclear bomber role and the Mirage III outclassed the Vautour as an interceptor; the last French Vautours left frontline service at the end of the 1970s. In Israel, the A-4 Skyhawk and F-4 Phantom replaced it, and it was retired in early 1972.\"}}]}<\/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\/dassault-mirage-iv-french-nuclear-bomber-force-de-frappe\/\">The Delta That Carried France&rsquo;s Atom Bomb<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/operation-focus-israel-six-day-war-1967\/\">Three Hours That Won a War: Operation Focus, 1967<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/dassault-mystere-iv-french-transonic-fighter-israel-india-history\/\">Dassault Myst\u00e8re IV: France&rsquo;s First Transonic Fighter Goes to War<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/dassault-mirage-iii-delta-fighter-history-six-day-war-swiss-affair\/\">Dassault Mirage III: The Delta That Made France a Fighter Power<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The SNCASO S.O. 4050 Vautour was a French bomber, attack jet and night fighter in one airframe. France kept it out of combat; Israel took it to war.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":31772727,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[666,664],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31772817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-and-legends","category-military-aviation"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>SO.4050 Vautour: France&#039;s Twin-Jet Bomber | MiGFlug<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The SO.4050 Vautour was a French twin-jet bomber, attack jet and night fighter. 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