Dassault Atlantique 2
The Dassault Atlantique 2 is a French-built maritime patrol aircraft descended from the original Breguet Atlantic, developed jointly by several European nations during the Cold War specifically to hunt Soviet submarines across the Atlantic and Mediterranean. Its distinctive double-bubble fuselage cross-section, with a slimmer lower lobe housing a weapons bay, was a deliberate design choice to keep torpedoes and sonobuoys internal rather than hung externally in the airflow. It carries a large mission crew operating radar, sonar, and magnetic-anomaly detection equipment to locate submarines from the air. France remains its primary operator, using upgraded Atlantique 2s for maritime surveillance and anti-submarine patrol today.
Did you know?
The Atlantique 2's double-bubble fuselage hides its weapons bay internally, keeping torpedoes and sonobuoys out of the airflow.
Specifications
| Length | 31.6 m (104 ft) |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 37.4 m (123 ft) |
| Height | 10.9 m (36 ft) |
| Persons on board | 12 |
| Crew | 12 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 43.5 t |
| Range | 4,000 NM (7,408 km) |
| Stall speed | 90 kt (167 km/h) |
| Service ceiling | 30,000 ft (9,144 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 25,000 ft (7,620 m) |
| Rate of climb | 2,900 ft/min (14.7 m/s) |
| Take-off distance | 1,840 m (6,037 ft) |
| Landing distance | 1,500 m (4,921 ft) |
| Fuel capacity | 23,120 l |
| Engines | 2x Rolls-Royce Tyne (turboprop) |
| Units built | 28 |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
In CatchFlights
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