The Sud-Ouest Aviation (SNCASO) S.O. 4050 Vautour II (French for vulture) was a French jet-powered bomber, interceptor, and attack aircraft developed and manufactured by aircraft company Sud Aviation. It is also the first supersonic capable French jet.
The Vautour was operated by France's Armée de l'Air, having been originally developed by Sud Aviation in response to a French requirement for a jet aircraft for bombing, low-level attack and all-weather interception operations. The Vautour was used in the Force de frappe under the Commandement des Forces Aériennes Stratégiques; each aircraft was suitable for the carriage of a nuclear weapon. The shortcomings of the type as a bomber, such as its lack of radar or other advanced navigation/attack systems, led to the type being replaced by the more capable Dassault Mirage IV. The Vautour never saw combat use with the French Air Force.
The only other customer for the Vautour was Israel. During its service with the Israeli Air Force (IAF), the type undertook various mission and roles and was quickly used in combat. Vautours were used during the wars between Israel and its neighbors, including the Six-Day War and the War of Attrition. Only one air-to-air kill was recorded by a Vautour; the type was used more for bombing and ground strafing and was reportedly considered by Israel to be comparable to the Soviet-built Ilyushin Il-28 medium bombers used by its regional adversaries. During the late 1970s, the Vautour was replaced by the Anglo-French Jaguar.
Variants[]
Prototypes[]
- S.O. 4050-1: Two-seat all-weather fighter prototype, powered by two 23.5-kN (5,291-lb) Atar 101B turbojet engines. First flew on October 16th 1952. One built
- S.O. 4050-2: Single-seat ground-attack prototype, powered by two 27.6-kN (6,217-lb) Atar 101D turbojet engines. First flew on December th 1953. One built.
- S.O. 4050-3: Two-seat bomber prototype, powered by two Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire turbojet engines. First flew on December 5th 1954. One built.
Production Variants[]
- Vautour IIA: Single-seat, long-range attack aircraft, armed with cannon and bombs (carried internally or on four underwing pylons)
- Vautour IIN: Two-seat, all-weather interceptor with DRAC-25AI or DRAC-32AI RDF in nose, pilot and co-pilot in tandem seats, armed with cannon, air-to-air missiles, and (theoretically) unguided rockets. The designation was later changed to II-1N.
- Vautour IIB: Two-seat bomber with glazed nose position for bombardier/observer replacing cannon pack, carrying bombs internally and on underwing pylons. Some IIB aircraft were converted to various specialized roles, principally reconnaissance (IIBR and IIBN), electronic countermeasures, and eventually target tugs (IIB-TT).
