Well, from commercial pov, loss of status of invincibility is a PR disaster. Thus the coping.
I like twz's analogy, that when most countries buy planes (and increasingly any piece of expensive, status military equipment), they don't buy a tool, they buy sports car. Rafale is - was - a magnificent sports car, which just lost. stupid price wasn't bug, it was a feature from prestige point of view. Price made it a point of bloated pride.
Realistically, getting shot down will only improve rafale as a combat product; compared to Typhoon, for example. And no one sane seriously considered non-stealth aircraft truly survivable within threat envelope since 1970s. But status, status is gone.
All the worse since it's France's best product, and will remain so for well over a decade to come.
I like twz's analogy, that when most countries buy planes (and increasingly any piece of expensive, status military equipment), they don't buy a tool, they buy sports car. Rafale is - was - a magnificent sports car, which just lost. stupid price wasn't bug, it was a feature from prestige point of view. Price made it a point of bloated pride.
Realistically, getting shot down will only improve rafale as a combat product; compared to Typhoon, for example. And no one sane seriously considered non-stealth aircraft truly survivable within threat envelope since 1970s. But status, status is gone.
All the worse since it's France's best product, and will remain so for well over a decade to come.
