Ukrainian Mirage 2000s Armed with Magic-2 Missiles Against Russian Air Targets

French Mirage 2000 fighter jets transferred to Ukraine have been equipped with Magic-2 air-to-air missiles to counter Russian air targets.

The Ukrainian Air Force Command has released footage of the aircraft that received these precision-guided French missiles.

The Magic-2 is equipped with an infrared homing head, which allows it to accurately hit targets at short ranges and during maneuver combat.

These missiles are used by Mirage 2000 fighter jets, as well as other aircraft integrated with French weapons control systems.

The warhead is a high-explosive fragmentation warhead with pre-notched fragments for maximum effectiveness against air targets.

The Magic-2 is designed to destroy enemy aircraft and helicopters, including fighters, attack aircraft and other enemy aircraft.

The released video shows that the Ukrainian Mirage 2000 has six marks of successful interceptions of Russian cruise missiles.

The main characteristics of the Magic-2 are: a range of up to 15 km, a speed of over Mach 3, a weight of about 89 kg, and a length of 2.72 m.

The missile consists of two separate compartments – front and rear – which are delivered in special containers.

The front compartment houses the infrared homing head, autopilot, electric rudder drive, power supply and fuze system.

The head operates in high-speed scanning mode thanks to a movable flat mirror with low inertia, which provides high noise immunity and effective target acquisition.

The rear compartment houses a solid-propellant engine with a total impulse of 2,650 kg/s and a warhead designed to create a dense debris field during an explosion.

Earlier, France announced the transfer of additional Mirage 2000-5F fighters to Ukraine, and the first such aircraft arrived in Ukraine in early February 2025.