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May 01, 2026
The cover of Aviation Week & Space Technology’s April 28, 1975, issue featured the first four Franco-German Alpha Jet trainer/close-support aircraft in close formation during flight test over Istres, France.
The lead aircraft had a special paint scheme on its wings and tail to facilitate observation of behavior during spin testing. The camouflaged aircraft was prototype 03, the close-support version for Germany’s Luftwaffe.
Dassault-Breguet photograph.
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