Key facts
- France's Pegase 26 mission involves Rafale fighter jets and support aircraft on a 40,000-kilometer journey.
- The mission aims to bolster deterrence and demonstrate France's long-range military reach in the Indo-Pacific.
- The deployment includes stopovers and joint exercises with strategic partners in the Arctic, Indo-Pacific, and Middle East.
- This year's mission utilizes a new northern route over Greenland and Canada to reach Alaska before proceeding to the Indo-Pacific.
- The exercise is designed to showcase France's ability to deploy combat aircraft far from its territory with aerial refuelling and logistical support.
France is enhancing its military presence and deterrence capabilities in the Indo-Pacific region through its Pegase 26 global air-power mission. The deployment involves Rafale fighter jets and supporting aircraft undertaking a 40,000-kilometer journey across three continents, including a new northern route over the Arctic.
The mission, which began on September 8 from Istres air base in southern France, is designed to demonstrate France's ability to project power and maintain operations far from its home territory, supported by aerial refuelling and logistical assets. The French Air and Space Force is utilizing three A330 MRTT tanker aircraft and two A400M transport aircraft, alongside four Rafale jets and approximately 300 personnel.
According to French deputy defence minister Alice Rufo, the deployment aims to strengthen interoperability with partner countries, enabling forces to train and operate together effectively. The mission includes nine stopovers, with planned engagements in Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, and India, as well as in the Middle East and Egypt.
Gen Julien Sabéné, commander of Pegase 26, highlighted the significance of the new northern route over Greenland and Canada to Alaska, noting it provides an alternative option for reaching the Indo-Pacific region. While the mission is not a nuclear exercise, some Rafale variants can carry nuclear-armed missiles, and pilots from France's strategic air force are participating, though the fighters are carrying only mock conventional weapons.