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Initially designated the Super-Mystere, the Mystere IV-A made its first flight on September 28, 1952. Nine prototypes were built, followed by 480 production machines that entered service in April 1953.
Designed from the Mystere II, the Mystere IV was characterized by a more pronounced swept wing of thinner section, an ovoid fuselage section, a new empennage and a Rolls-Royce Tay engine produced at the Hispano-Suiza factory.
Israeli Mystere IVs saw action during the Arab-Israeli Wars and were joined by the French Mysteres for the Suez crisis. On June 8, 1967, Israeli aircraft were involved in the tragic and controversial attack on USS Liberty.
India procured 104 of these aircraft in 1957. It was used extensively in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. On September 7th, 1965 Squadron Leader Ajjamada Devayya of the Indian Air Force shot down a F-104 Starfighter commanded by Flight Lieutenant Amjad Khan of the Pakistan Air Force in a raid over Sargoda. Amjad managed to score several hits on Devayya's Mystere and believed it to be destroyed, so he broke off to look for another target. However, Devayya's Mystere was still operable, and he successfully shot down the Starfigher. Devayya was killed or crashed soon after. This battle went unnoticed in India until it was later revealed in John Fricker's book Battle for Pakistan. Devayya was awarded the Maha Vir Chakra posthumously 23 years after the battle. However, Kahn claimed Amjad was not shot down, but blamed a midair collision with debris from a downed Mystere for his crash.
The phasing out of the aircraft started soon after Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, but it saw further action in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. It was completely phased out of the Indian Air Force by 1973.
The Mystere IVA was used for several years by the "Patrouille de France".
In addition to production Mystere IVA, Dassault developed an upgraded Mystere IVB with either Rolls-Royce Avon (first two prototypes) or SNECMA Atar 101 (third prototype) afterburning engine and a radar ranging gunsight. However, the project was abandoned in favor of the promising Super-Mystère.
Dassault also proposed a two-seat all-weather interceptor version called Mystere IVN. The aircraft was equipped with the AN/APG-33 radar in an arrangement similar to North American F-86D Sabre Dog, powered by a Rolls-Royce Avon turbojet, and armed with 55 by 68 mm Matra rockets in a retractable belly tray. The first prototype flew on July 19, 1954. AdA eventually decided to purchase Sud Aviation Vautour and F-86K Sabre for the interceptor role but the Mystere IVN prototype continued to fly for several years as a testbed for radar equipment.
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