The front hemisphere of the OSF is visible above the nose cone, beside the refuelling probe.

The Optronique Secteur Frontal (OSF) [literally: Frontal Sector Optronics] is a long-range optoelectronics system, developed for the French Dassault Rafale combat aircraft.

It allows target tracking through IRST (infrared search and track) and visual sensors:

  • On the left, the main IR detector can be used as forward-looking infrared (FLIR) (to send a video signal to the pilot), or to detect:
    • air targets (at ranges up to 100 km)
    • ground or sea targets (up to 6 km)
  • On the right, a TV/IR sensor is used for target identification (40 km range) and includes a laser rangefinder.[1]

Visible waveband capability is included to identify targets in situations where visual indentification is required by the rules of engagement.[2]

The benefits in air-to-air scenarios are:

  • Passive long-range detection
  • Target identification before engagement

References

  1. ^ "L'optronique secteur frontal (L'OSF)". www.aviation-francaise.com.
  2. ^ Dassault Aviation Smart and discrete sensors
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