Nesher

     Notes: The Nesher (Griffon Vulture) is an Israeli development of the Mirage V, a stop on the way to the Kfir.  It is a dedicated ground attack aircraft, and has no radar except for a radar gunsight.  The aircraft has part of the improvements of the Kfir, such as the more powerful engine, but it is mostly a Mirage in design.  It is used by Israel and Argentina, where it is called the Dagger.

     The Nesher’s airframe is identical to the Mirage 5, but internally, it is an all-Israeli aircraft, with an Israeli version of a Martin-Baker ejection seat and Israeli avionics and cockpit design. A wider array of air-to-air missiles may be carried by the Nesher, including heat-seeking missiles of US, French, and Israeli make. A wider variety of air-to-ground munitions may be carried, ranging from gravity bombs to ASMs. The high point of the Nesher in Israeli service was during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, where they performed well and were known for their accurate bombing, and for over 100 air-to-air kills. In 1974, the Nesher began to be replaced in service by the Kfir (see Israeli Fighters). Neshers also saw combat service with Israel’s only export customer for the Nesher, Argentina. These Neshers saw combat service in the 1978 Begle Conflict with Chile, and in the 1982 Falklands War, where they flew 153 sorties against land targets and shipping, damaging six British vessels, though 11 were lost in combat, including nine to British Harriers. The remaining Argentine Neshers were upgraded to the Finger standard. The Nesher is powered by a SNECMA 9C turbojet with 9500 pounds thrust, or 13690 pounds thrust in afterburner.

     The Nesher S was the standard single-seat fighter version. Ten two-seat trainers were also produced by the Israelis, the Nesher Ts. The Nesher is somewhat less maneuverable than the Mirage 5, as well as having simplified avionics. However, it has a longer combat range and larger payload. The Argentine Dagger is equivalent to the basic Nesher, being simply Neshers with some refurbishment and cockpit labeling replaced with that of the Spanish language. The Finger is upgraded almost to the Kfir C2 standard, with radar, laser rangefinder, and avionics added, but without the airframe improvements and not using the J79 engine.