Babcock France has secured an eight-year contract to provide aircraft for simulating hostile forces and supporting air-to-ground training for French military personnel.
Awarded by the French Armed Forces Commissariat Service, the programme will be delivered in partnership with SDTS and Top Aces France. It aims to enhance combat readiness across the French Air and Space Force, Navy, and Army.
The partners are expected to conduct up to 400 training sorties and more than 1,000 flight hours annually. Operations will be conducted from military airbases and civilian airports across France.
Aircraft to Simulate Enemy Forces
Under the contract, Babcock will operate and maintain upgraded L-39 aircraft from its Dijon-Bourgogne facility. Meanwhile, SDTS will operate and maintain A-4N Skyhawk and Alpha Jet aircraft supplied by Top Aces France.
These aircraft will participate in exercises alongside French Rafale and Mirage 2000 fighters, replicating hostile aircraft in simulated adversary missions known as Red Air training. Activities will include within-visual-range air combat manoeuvres to prepare pilots for complex operational scenarios.
The L-39 aircraft will also support Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) training, helping personnel practise coordinating and directing combat aircraft during strikes against ground targets.
For these missions, the aircraft will be equipped with Remotely Operated Video Enhanced Receiver technology, enabling real-time video sharing between pilots and ground-based controllers. The capability will allow JTAC personnel to practise target identification, tactical information exchange, friendly-force tracking, and air-support coordination.
Builds on Earlier French Military Pilot Training Agreement
The latest contract expands Babcock’s existing involvement in French military aviation training. Earlier this year, the company secured a separate agreement to train personnel for the French Air and Space Force and Navy.
That programme includes classroom instruction and practical flight training for student pilots, weapons systems officers, and future simulator instructors.
Training activities will be conducted at Salon-de-Provence Air Base in southern France using Cirrus SR22 aircraft, while Grob 120 aircraft will support training at Cognac Air Base in western France.
