[Photo] Rafale jets refuel over Baghdad during first French night air strikes in Iraq

This photo proves air-to-air refueling of armed planes involved in the air strikes in Syria and Iraq may also take place over large cities.

On the night of Oct. 2, the French Air Force Rafale multirole jets deployed to Al Dhafra, UAE, conducted an air strike in the area of Mosul, in Iraq.

It was the first night mission of the Rafales since the beginning of Operation Chammal (as the French have dubbed their participation to the air campaign against ISIS), another 7 hour mission which required several aerial refuelings from both FAF C-135FR and U.S. KC-10 Extender.

Whilst it was impossible to determine the town that was barely visible below the F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jets in the images and video we posted last week, in this case, the French Air Force not only posted the photographs, but also said that the city in the background is Iraq capitcal town Baghdad.

Image credit: French Air Force / Armée de l’Air

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About David Cenciotti

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David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.