Dassault Mirage IIIE2Q

[comrade harps]

Dassault Mirage IIIE2Q
#395, 6th Squadron, Iraqi Air Force
Habbaniya Air Base, Iraq, late September 1980



Viewed by the UN as an unreliable neutral partner, Iraq's repeated attempts at acquiring modern fighters like the F-4 Phantom II and Mirage F1 were thwarted throughout the 1970s. Instead, the Iraqi Air Force during the '70s modernised and expanded on batches of new and second-hand F-5A/B/RF-5A Freedom Fighters, F-5E/F Tiger IIs and Mirage III/5s. Iraq's first Mirages were 18 ex-Canadian Mirage IIIC, dubbed Mirage IIICQ in Iraqi service. These entered service in 1967 and were supplemented by 6 Mirage IIIBQ trainers. 28 new-build Mirage IIIEQ and 10 Mirage IIIDQ trainers from Dassault's Brazillian licensee, Embraer, followed in 1973-75. 35 HAL-built, ex-Indian Air Force Mirage 5IN fighters-bombers and 4 Mirage 5DIN two-seaters arrived in 1978, being redesignated as Mirage 5Q and Mirage 5DQ, respectively. As a follow-on to the Brazillian contract, 36 new Embraer-built Mirage IIIE2Qs were delivered in 1978-79. These were the last Mirages built by Embraer before switching to F-16A/B production. This late-'70s influx of Mirages replaced elderly ex-Saudi Lockheed F-104A Starfighters and a variety of Embraer EMB.91RQ models.




The Mirage IIIE2Q can be externally identified by the presence of its small leading-edge root extensions (LERX) and Embraer-designed canards. After Dassault flew a Mirage IIIE prototype with canards in 1967, Mirage production licensees Embraer and HAL individually developed their own Mirage canard solutions. Embraer's canards are distinctly angular compared to those produced by Dassault and HAL. In 1973, a Mirage 50X technology demonstrator flew with both the Dassault canards and small LERX; a 1982 iteration of this airframe, rebuilt as the Mirage 3NG, featured (among other advances) a larger LERX that effectively formed a cranked-delta wing. The Mirage IIIE2Q features the small, original LERX as flown by Dassault in 1973.




When Iraq invaded Iran on 22 September 1980, the Iraqi Air Force had about 20 ex-RAAF Canberra B.20s, approximately 50 Freedom Fighters, roughly 45 Tiger IIs and around 140 Mirages. The 6th Squadron, located at Habbaniya Air Base, retired its EMB.91RQ-4s in early1979 as it converted to the Mirage IIIE2Q. Tasked with both fighter and attack duties, the squadron was active from the outset of hostilities and its aircraft routinely featured in official film footage and stills released by the Iraqi Ministry for Information. This aircraft, #395, is seen in several film and photographic images released from late September 1980 to mid-1985. In some of its appearances, it is seen (as depicted here) carrying a centreline fuel tank, two Alkan Olive Stick RPK-10 fuel tank/bomb carriers each with 4 250kg Avibras BAFG-250 bombs, a downgraded, export version of the Phillips Canada Rose Wine Barax ECM pod and an Orenda Plum Fairy Phimat chaff dispenser.




The Mirage IIIE2Q remained in service with the 6th Squadron until late 1986, when they were replaced by the Dassault Mirage F1E4Q (which were ex-Canadian Mirage F1Cs, refurbished and upgraded by Kelowna Flightcraft, a Dassault subsidiary).

[Pellson]

Veeeeery nice desert camo 

[comrade harps]

Veeeeery nice desert camo 

Veeeeery nice almost Israeli Kfir camo! 

[PR19_Kit]

Veeeeery nice almost Israeli Kfir camo! 

Perhaps some of the reasoning for its choice? 

VERY nicely done, no matter what the 'politics'. 

[zenrat]

Good job Comrade.

[comrade harps]

Veeeeery nice almost Israeli Kfir camo! 

Perhaps some of the reasoning for its choice? 

Exactly.

[NARSES2]

Looks neat in that scheme in particular 

[chrisonord]

Very  nice 👌

[Tophe]

Good!

[SPINNERS]

Lovely stuff. I'm all over anything Miragey (new word, remember where you heard it first) at the moment.

[comrade harps]

Lovely stuff. I'm all over anything Miragey (new word, remember where you heard it first) at the moment.

The RW Miragey family is a whiff world all of itself. Especially with the recent Mirsgey kits you can really play around with the options in the box.