The Quest for Relevant Air Power

French Air Force │ 101
FAF C-160 Transall operating from a gravel strip in Chad
Courtesy FAF, Sirpa Air
The FAF was also engaged in counterinsurgency operations. During
Operation Lamantin in late 1977 and early 1978, for instance,
up to eight French Jaguar combat aircraft conducted decisive
strikes over two days against Polisario rebels raiding Mauritanian
government installations, thereby contributing to the establishment
of a ceasefire. They were supported by tanker aircraft and
guided by French Navy Atlantic aircraft that served as command
and SIGINT platforms. French forces never exceeded 350 personnel.
113 This experience, spanning the entire spectrum from
counterinsurgency operations to offensive counterair missions,
rendered the FAF one of the most combat experienced Western
air forces in the late 1980s. 114 Nonetheless, operations in Africa
remained secondary to the FAF’s nuclear role. 115
After decades of autonomous operations, interoperability became
a particular challenge for the FAF at the outset of the post–
Cold War era. Within a decade, the FAF came a long way. Nowadays,
it is capable of rapidly integrating itself into major combined
air operations and accomplishing leadership functions, as the
French commitment to the NRF air component conveys. Moreover,
the FAF has retained its ability to operate autonomously,
particularly in African theatres. It offers French decision makers a
broad range of options across the entire spectrum of force.