Just one year after France retired its last Super Étendard carrier-based strike planes from service, Argentina announced it is considering buying six of the retired warplanes.
The Dassault-Breguet Super Étendard has always been more distinguished by its armaments and technical capabilities than by its performance specifications. While it ably served France in six wars over 38 years, the Super Étendard will always be remembered foremost for its role in sinking two British ships during the Falklands War—an event that would shake up naval planners for years to follow.
The Étendard, or “Battle Standard,” was first developed as proposed successor to the ’50-era Dassault Mystère fighter-bomber. While the French Armée de l’air passed over the single- and twin-engine Étendards II and VI in favor of the iconic Mirage III, Dassault later managed to sell the French Navy on the IVM variant for service onboard its new home built carriers, Foch and Clemenceau.
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