Dassault Aviation's strategy for the future of Rafale is revealed in Bangladesh

With 548 aircraft ordered, or assured of being ordered, to date, including 323 for export, the Rafale turns out to be a tremendous success for its designer, Dassault Aviation, and the entire Team Rafale.

This success is historic, because for the first time since the Mirage III, a new generation French fighter has exported better than the previous generation model, in this case the Mirage 2000, which sold 297 units on the international scene.

This success, which does not seem likely to subside in the years to come, now poses a new problem for the French industrialist. Indeed, global demand today is very high, and the Rafale is involved in more than ten global competitions and consultations, while at the same time the aircraft manufacturer still has to deliver no fewer than 260 aircraft to date.

This order book, envied by many European, Russian or Chinese aircraft manufacturers, is not without posing new challenges for Dassault Aviation, which must adapt its offer as well as its production, to this new reality. To respond, it is betting on a three-level commercial strategy, which is reflected in recent revelations, concerning French involvement in Dhaka, to sell 8 to 12 new Rafales to the Bangladesh Air Force.

France pushes the Rafale to strengthen Bangladesh Air Force

Indeed, according to the Indian press, it seems that the recent visit of the French President, Emmanuel Macron, to Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in New Delhi, was an opportunity for French diplomacy, and for Dassault Aviation, to actively support the Rafale, in the competition against the Eurofighter Typhoon, for the modernization of the country's air force.

The contract would cover the acquisition of 8 aircraft, accompanied by all the munitions, spare parts and systems, allowing them to be implemented in a fighter squadron, for an estimated amount of $2,5 billion, accompanied by an option for 4 additional aircraft.

The fighters would reinforce the country's fighter fleet, currently composed of 8 MIG-29s modernized in 2014 by Belarus, and around thirty J-7s, a Chinese fighter derived from the Mig-21, both of which are largely outdated, particularly for this particularly active theater, Bangladesh bordering the Bay of Bengal.

Although the GDP per capita is still very low, around $3000 per year, the country is experiencing very sustained growth, of the order of 7% per year, which should allow it to more than double its GDP, which is now $460 billion. by 2040, to exceed $1.000 billion.

This growth, which is partly built on the rise in the standard of living in China and India, will therefore offer Dhaka much greater resources for its armies in the future. France intends to position itself in this market in a privileged manner, including by supporting contracts which, due to their volume, did not seem to interest Dassault Aviation until now.

The order book for Dassault Aviation's flagship today, compared to industrial production capacities

This negotiation is taking place in a context that the aircraft manufacturer has not experienced since the end of the 60s and the beginning of the 70s, with the success of the Mirage III and the Mirage V. Indeed, the current order book for the Rafale, will require more than seven years to be cleared, if the production rates of the Mérignac site, and of the entire subcontracting chain of the Team Rafale, manage to reach the objective of three devices produced each month, set by Eric Trappier.

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