The Dassault Mirage III represents a landmark in French aerospace production. Produced from the early 1960s to equip units of the Armée de l'Air, it proved to be extremely effective right from the start. It quickly became a commercial success and was exported to numerous countries, participating in various conflicts during the 1970s and 1980s.

Characterized by its distinctive delta wing, it was capable, thanks to its Snecma Atar engine with afterburner, of exceeding Mach 2 speeds. Following the Mirage IIIC, designed for the interceptor role, a multirole and ground-attack version was developed. This led to the Mirage IIIE, characterized aerodynamically by a lengthening of the fuselage to accommodate improved avionics.