Dassault Étendard II

The Dassault Étendard II was a French prototype fighter aircraft, first designated Mystère XXII, developed as a follow-on to the Dassault Mystère series in answer to a French Air Force requirement for a light jet-powered fighter-bomber. Dassault built a very similar aircraft in parallel for the NATO NBMR-1 light strike-fighter competition, the Étendard VI. The single prototype flew on 23 July 1956 on two Turbomeca Gabizo turbojets, armed with two 30 mm cannon, but it proved underpowered and showed little of the promise of the Mirage series. The French Air Force rejected it in favour of the Dassault Mirage III and the work was quickly abandoned, although the later Étendard IV was developed successfully for the French Navy.