France’s first Falcon 8X Archange spy jet enters military testing

The first Dassault Falcon 8X Archange signals intelligence aircraft has landed at Évreux-Fauville Air Base 105, the Normandy station from which the French Air and Space Force will operate the type.

The landing took place on October 7, 2026, according to an update published by the French Ministry of the Armed Forces.

The aircraft has since entered a technical and operational experimentation phase. The phase is being led by the Military Air Expertise Center (CEAM), the air force’s test and evaluation organization.

Operational testing underway at Évreux

France’s first Dassault Falcon 8X Archange signals intelligence aircraft on the ground at Évreux-Fauville Air Base. (Credit: Armée de l’Air et de l’Espace)

A CEAM team dedicated to Archange took part in loading trials and tests of the aircraft’s operational equipment, the ministry said.

The work was coordinated with the flight test arm of the French defense procurement agency, the Direction générale de l’armement (DGA), as well as with Dassault Aviation and Thales. Airborne Electronic Squadron 5/64 ‘Dunkerque’, the Évreux-based unit slated to receive the aircraft, has also supported the campaign.

In Évreux, on October 8, 2026, the aircraft and its mission system were presented to the chief of staff of the French Air and Space Force, plus senior military and civilian officials. The event was part of a presentation of air force capabilities organized by France’s Institute for Higher National Defense Studies (IHEDN).

Replacing France’s retired C-160G Gabriel spy planes

Archange, short for ‘Avions de Renseignement à CHArge utile de Nouvelle GEnération’, pairs a Falcon 8X trijet modified by Dassault Aviation with the Universal Electronic Warfare Capability (CUGE) mission system developed by Thales. According to the ministry, the aircraft’s role is to collect and exploit adversary electromagnetic emissions. It can also update and disseminate the adversary’s electronic order of battle in real time, as well as feeding electronic warfare databases and libraries.

The aircraft succeeds the Transall C-160G Gabriel, which the air force withdrew from service in 2022, before its replacement was available.

Archange deliveries slip beyond original schedule

A French Air Force Transall C-160G Gabriel signals intelligence aircraft. The type was retired in 2022 and is being replaced by the Falcon 8X Archange. (Credit: Armée de l’Air et de l’Espace)

The ministry now expects three aircraft and three ground systems to be delivered to the forces by 2028-2029.

This is later than originally planned. The DGA ordered the program on December 30, 2019, with a firm contract covering the first two aircraft. A ministry program sheet drawn up under the 2019-2025 military programming law listed expected deliveries in 2025, 2026 and 2028.

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When the DGA announced the aircraft’s first flight on July 25, 2025, it declared that the three aircraft would be delivered by the end of the 2024-2030 military programming law.

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