The extremely powerful F-22 Raptor was once beaten in a dog fight with Dassault's Rafale fighter jet, according to reports, An interesting video has resurfaced showing the Rafale beating F-22 Raptor in a 2009 dogfight.
French fighter 'Downs' F-22 in Mock Comba
The French along with the British and the US conducted a training exercise or a mock combat in November 2009. A squad of F-22s from the Air Force's 1st Fighter Wing in Virginia flew to Al Dhafra, in the UAE, to train with French air force Rafale fighters and Typhoon jets from the British Royal Air Force, reported The National Interest, an American magazine.
The following month, the French Ministry of Defense released video captures from a Rafale's forward-facing camera showing an F-22 in a disadvantageous dogfighting position, implying the French plane had won at least one round of pretend fighting.
American Pilots Claim Their Planes Had Gone Undefeated Against the French
However, the Americans refuted the evidence and countered by claiming that their planes had gone undefeated against the French and in-fact the F-22 had shot down Rafale's six times in one-on-one engagement while five other mock fights had ended in a draw, according to The Eurasian Times.
'American Lie' was Caught in a June 2013 Video
But a video posted by a French Website on June 18, 2013 proves that the Americans were lying — or at least incorrect. The video from the Rafale's camera clearly shows the French plane maneuvering into a good position to launch an infrared-guided Mica missile against a defending F-22.
F-22: World's Most Powerful Aircraft
F-22 is supposed to be the most fearsome warplane in history, a quarter-billion-dollar-per-plane technological marvel that flies higher and faster than its opponents while avoiding detection by radar.
The F-22 Raptor is an advanced tactical fighter aircraft that boasts agility, stealth, and range. This supersonic, dual-engine fighter jet was developed to provide the USAF with absolute control over the skies. But, the French victory over the F-22 occurred in November 2009. This old dogfight has raised a significant question: would Rafale be able to beat an F-35 fighter jet too?
F-35 vs. Rafale
The F-35 has had more field experience than F-22. Unlike the Raptor, which the US refused to export so as to keep this advanced technology to itself, the F-35 aircraft has been exported globally and is used by several US allies, according to The Eurasian Times.
F-35 is better but there are lot technical problems with it. F-35 is stealth plane and that is main and only advantage when compared to Rafale, according to Aviatia. Both Planes use same AAM and AGM missiles and their radars are on same level. In close 1-on-1 fight F-35 don't have chance against Rafale.
Rafale is more agile, has better thrust to weight ratio and has lot more chance to win.
Rafale's agility, thrust-to-weight ratio, and maneuverability are likely to prove lethal to the F-35. This would be a case of history repeating itself, for an F-35 vs. Rafale dogfight is likely to be very similar to the exchange that happened between Rafale and the F-22 more than a decade ago, reported, The Eurasian Times.
