With coffee cups in hand, technicians in faded blue dungarees move between computers and heavy cables in the calm, steady rhythm that is common around dangerous machines. A Rafale engine comes to life behind a thick glass wall, where it is bolted to a steel test bench. The sound doesn’t just fill the room; it pushes into your chest. One small flaw or one blade that isn’t lined up right could cause the whole system to break down in a split second.
Europe can make engines for fighter jets
Europe can make engines for fighter jets. But no one is scared. Instead, you see pure focus.
A young engineer moves closer to the glass and stares at the flame coming from the exhaust. “Listen,” she says. “You are hearing the only fighter engine in Europe that we can build by ourselves.”
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She means France.
The Hidden Air Power Advantage of France
From a distance, Europe looks strong: Airbus is the leader in civil aviation, there are multinational fighter programs, shared budgets, and layered cooperation. But when you look at the engine, which is the most sensitive part of a combat aircraft, the picture changes a lot. France is almost by itself.
The M88 engine for the Rafale was designed and tested by Safran under the constant supervision of the DGA. It is the only modern European fighter engine whose entire design, testing, and industrial control stay within national borders. No licenses from the U.S. There are no required British, German, or Italian partners. Every choice can be made in France, from the digital model to the last turbine blade.
This isn’t about being proud. It’s about using strategy to get an edge.
You won’t find a polished showroom in a DGA test hall. Instead, there are thick concrete walls that have been stained by exhaust, old analogue gauges next to ultra-high-resolution screens, and cardboard coffee cups on racks of sensors that are worth millions. In the middle is a silver cylinder that looks small compared to the thunder it makes. This is the M88, the heart of the Rafale.
Engineers push the engine way past what a pilot would ever try during test campaigns
Changes in the throttle that happen all of a sudden, fake bird strikes, eating sand, and violent temperature swings. Cameras follow a single blade that is only a few centimetres long and spins at tens of thousands of revolutions per minute.
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If that blade breaks, you lose more than just a part. It’s a plane. A pilot. A mission. And the trustworthiness of a country.
This is where the DGA’s job becomes clear
It’s not just an agency that approves contracts. It is the state’s main tool for defence analysis. The DGA sets very high standards for the M88 and the future engine of the Franco-German SCAF fighter. They also test prototypes over and over again until only the ones that really work are left.
Safran would still be a big engine maker even without DGA labs and test benches. But France wouldn’t be the only European country that could fully control the whole chain of design, materials, production, testing, certification, and operational feedback.
When problems arise, that small difference—who really owns the last bolt—becomes very important.
The microscopic accuracy that goes into making a French fighter engine
To understand why this ability is so rare, you need to look at it on a millimetre scale. It’s not just about raw thrust when you build a fighter engine. It’s about tolerances that are so precise that a human hair would seem thick in comparison. The DGA and Safran work together like watchmakers with flamethrowers.
In one workshop, a technician makes small adjustments to the cooling holes in a turbine blade. You can barely see each opening; they were laser-drilled into metal that was made at the atomic level to withstand very high temperatures. The DGA’s job is to set a clear limit on how hot “extreme” can be and to make sure that limit is always met.
Here, accuracy is a must. It’s why a pilot can turn on the full afterburner and know that the engine will work perfectly.
There are a lot of skilled engineers in Europe, but not many countries have full control over the whole chain
For example, the EJ200 engine in the Eurofighter Typhoon is a project that involves people from many countries. Each country is in charge of certain modules, software parts, or skills. It has a lot of power, but no one capital controls it completely.
France took a different route. The government always put money into a national engine lineage, from the Mirage series to the Rafale, even when budgets were tight and critics said working together would be cheaper. The DGA pushed for improvements in materials, aerodynamics, digital simulation, and testing infrastructure in the US, keeping up facilities that many thought were too big for a mid-sized power.
Recent geopolitical shocks have brought this long-term choice to the forefront
As tensions rise, export controls get stricter and supply chains become political tools. This makes relying on foreign approvals a weakness. Because one important part or line of code comes from outside Europe, some European planes can’t be sold or upgraded without permission from outside Europe.
France talks directly with partners like India, Egypt, and Greece about the Rafale and its M88 engine. Without permission from outside sources, the DGA can approve changes, new versions, and long-term support. France still works with other countries, but when it really counts, it keeps the keys to its engines.
How the DGA Keeps Its Lead in Technology
To keep this level of skill, you have to keep moving. The DGA runs loop that never stops connecting labs, test centers, and operational units. Rafale squadrons that fly in the desert send back information about engine wear. DGA analysis teams use that information to improve test protocols, which can mean making a small change to the software or adding a new protective coating.
The cycle never ends. The DGA keeps track of every failure, micro-crack, and strange thing that happens. Safran might suggest a new alloy or a 3D-printed part to make things work better. The DGA responds by recreating the worst possible conditions to find out where and how it breaks.
From the outside, this process may seem strict
Engineers talk about it in different ways from the inside. A lot of people remember late-night tests when the data suddenly spikes and everyone waits in silence as the systems strain. At those times, there are no shortcuts. Life takes over.
States frequently commit analogous mistakes: excessive dependence on foreign collaborators, disregard for unremarkable testing infrastructure, and permitting scarce expertise to diminish without dissemination. The DGA works hard to stay away from these traps. It pays for little-known doctoral research on high-temperature fatigue and advanced alloys, and it keeps databases of test results that are older than many of its interns.
It looks slow from a distance. It’s the only way to keep such a complicated craft safe up close.
“A DGA engineer says, “People see the Rafale engine as a product.”
“Actually, it’s a living ecosystem of skills.” You can’t build one anymore if you don’t keep it up for five years. “You can buy one, but you’re just a country.”
The DGA sets future engine requirements based on what the Air and Space Force needs.
Safran turns those needs into plans for designs and production. Operational units give real-world feedback to improve standards. Test centers push engines to their limits so pilots don’t have to. Research labs are getting ready for the next big breakthroughs in stealth, heat resistance, and efficiency.
A Quiet Monopoly That Poses a Threat to Europe
When you know how a fighter engine works, Europe’s industrial map changes. France is the only country that can fully design, build, and certify a modern fighter engine on its own. Others help and come up with new ideas, but not with the same level of control over their own affairs.
This reality makes things hard to figure out. Should Europe put everything into a few big programs and accept new dependencies? Should every country keep some of its independence, even if it costs more? Or is the French model—a long-term national investment led by a strong state actor like the DGA—something to think about?
There are no easy answers. It’s clear that this technical detail will have a big effect on future combat systems, freedom to trade, and political decisions.
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When a Rafale flies over Paris during the 27 February parade, the sound of its engine carries a quiet message.
It talks about a country that decided decades ago to learn about every turning blade and never let that knowledge go.
Important Points
- France is the only European country that has complete control over the fighter engine chain, from design to testing.
- The DGA’s main job is to Setting standards, paying for research, making sure of extreme testing, and keeping expertise
- Impact on strategy: The right to export, upgrade, and support engines without getting permission from other countries
