Ukraine loses French-made Mirage 2000 fighter jet to reported technical failure
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One of Ukraine's Mirage 2000 fighter jets crashed on the evening of July 22 due to a reported "failure of aviation equipment," the Air Force said.
The pilot, who was performing a flight mission at the time of the incident, reported the equipment failure to the flight manager and safely ejected from the aircraft, according to the Air Force. The pilot is now in stable condition.
No casualties were reported. The Air Force said the pilot "acted competently" and followed the required protocols of an emergency.
A special commission has been appointed to investigate the causes of the incident.
"Unfortunately, we lost our combat aircraft," President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address.
"A French machine, very effective, one of our Mirage jets. The pilot managed to escape, and it was not shot down by the Russians."
The French-made Mirage 2000s were pledged to Ukraine in a military aid package announced in June 2024. The package also included training for pilots. The first jets arrived in February 2025, and began repelling Russian aerial attacks in March.
The Mirage 2000, a fourth-generation supersonic fighter, was first introduced by Dassault Aviation in the 1970s. The Mirage 2000-5 variant, introduced in 1999, features upgraded avionics, improved air-to-air and air-to-ground combat capabilities, and an advanced sensor and control system.
French President Emmanuel Macron told Zelensky on July 18 that Paris is ready to expand the Mirage jet pilot training program, training more pilots on more aircraft.
