Dassault Mirage IIIC
The first production Mirage III — a Mach 2 delta interceptor with twin 30 mm guns and an optional rocket booster · First flight 1960 · In service 1961
The Mirage IIIC was the first production model of Dassault's delta fighter. It followed the 1956 Mirage III prototype and ten pre-production Mirage IIIAs, one of which reached Mach 2.2 in October 1958 and became the first Western European aircraft to pass Mach 2 in level flight. The IIIC was slightly longer than the IIIA, had the Atar 09B engine with an eyelid nozzle and a Cyrano I bis radar, and carried two 30 mm DEFA cannon under the intakes. If the guns were removed, a SEPR rocket booster could be fitted in the rear fuselage. It first flew in October 1960.
The French Air Force took 95 IIICs, with deliveries from July 1961, and flew them until 1988. The type was paired with the two-seat Mirage IIIB trainer, which had no radar or cannon. Early aircraft had three pylons, and an outboard station on each wing was added soon after for Sidewinder or Magic missiles.
The IIIC also launched the Mirage's export career. Israel received 72 IIICJs between 1962 and 1964, with simplified electronics and no rocket provision, and South Africa took 16 IIICZs. Switzerland bought a single IIIC as a development aircraft for its licence-built Mirage IIIS. In 1982–83 Israel sold 19 IIICJs on to Argentina.
