The Rafale M Combat Aircraft

The Rafale M Combat Aircraft, originally uploaded by rodrigo_bravo_d.

A French Rafale M combat aircraft performs a catapult-assisted launch from

the flight deck of the nuclear powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN

65) during operations in the Mediterranean Sea. The French Rafale is the

first French aircraft to land and launch on an American carrier in six

years. Enterprise and embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 1 are currently

underway on a scheduled six-month deployment.