Babcock wins French ‘Red Air’ training deal

Eight-year contract will be delivered alongside partners SDTS and Top Aces using fleet of L-39s, A-4Ns and Alpha Jets.
Defence aviation services provider Babcock, plus partners SDTS and Top Aces, has secured a new eight-year contract to provide adversary training for the French armed forces.

This will be delivered using a fleet of Babcock France-owned Aero Vodochody L-39s – operated from the firm’s Dijon-Bourgogne base – alongside Douglas A-4N Skyhawks and Dornier Alpha Jets owned by Top Aces France and flown by SDTS.

Babcock France acquired its fleet of 11 L-39s in 2024 from Apache Aviation and already flies them on behalf of France’s EPNER test pilot school and DGA defence procurement agency.

To involve French air force Dassault Rafale and Mirage 2000 fighters, the ‘Red Air’ missions will be conducted from military air bases and civilian airports across France, delivering up to 400 training sorties and over 1,000 flying hours annually.

Babcock has not disclosed a value for the contract.

Separately, the DGA has received the 73rd and final tranche 4 Rafale – delivered in the 4.1-standard configuration – which will be employed by its Essais en vol centre as a flying testbed.

Extensive modifications to the jet will now be performed to add test and data collection equipment before it starts operations in the second quarter of 2027 to support the development of future enhancements, including a planned F5 standard.

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