SEPECAT Jaguar The SEPECAT Jaguar is an Anglo - French jet ground attack aircraft , originally used by the British Royal Air Force and the French " Armée de l ' Air " in the close air support and nuclear strike role , and still in service with several export customers , notably the Indian Air Force and the Royal Air Force of Oman . Originally conceived in the 1960s as jet trainer with a light ground attack capability , the requirement for the aircraft soon changed to include supersonic performance , reconnaissance and tactical nuclear strike roles . A carrier - based variant was also planned for French service , but this was cancelled in favour of the cheaper Dassault Super Étendard . The airframes were manufactured by SEPECAT ( Société Européenne de Production de l ' avion Ecole de Combat et d ' Appui Tactique ) , a joint venture between Breguet and the British Aircraft Corporation , one of the first major joint - Anglo - French military aircraft programs . The Jaguar was exported to India , Oman , Ecuador and Nigeria . With various air forces , the Jaguar was used in numerous conflicts and military operations in Mauritania , Chad , Iraq , Bosnia , and Pakistan , as well as providing a ready nuclear delivery platform for Britain , France , and India throughout the latter half of the Cold War and beyond . In the Gulf War , the Jaguar was praised for its reliability and was a valuable coalition resource . The aircraft served with the " Armée de l ' Air " as the main strike / attack aircraft until 1 July 2005 , and with the Royal Air Force until the end of April 2007 . It was replaced by the Panavia Tornado and the Eurofighter Typhoon in the RAF and the Dassault Rafale in the " Armée de l ' Air " . India plans in the long term to replace its Jaguar fleet with the developing Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft ( AMCA ) . Development . Background . The Jaguar programme began in the early 1960s , in response to a British requirement ( Air Staff Target 362 ) for an advanced supersonic jet trainer to replace the Folland Gnat T1 and Hawker Hunter T7 , and a French requirement ( ECAT or " École de Combat et d ' Appui Tactique " , " Tactical Combat Support Trainer " ) for a cheap , subsonic dual role trainer and light attack aircraft to replace the Fouga Magister , Lockheed T - 33 and Dassault Mystère IV . In both countries several companies tendered designs : BAC , Hunting , Hawker Siddeley and Folland in Britain ; Breguet , Potez , Sud - Aviation , Nord , and Dassault from France . A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in May 1965 for the two countries to develop two aircraft , a trainer based on the ECAT , and the larger AFVG ( Anglo - French Variable Geometry ) . Cross - channel negotiations led to the formation of SEPECAT ( " Société Européenne de Production de l ' Avion d ' École de Combat et d ' Appui Tactique " – the " European company for the production of a combat trainer and tactical support aircraft " ) in 1966 as a joint venture between Breguet and the British Aircraft Corporation to produce the airframe . Though based in part on the Breguet Br . 121 , using the same basic configuration and an innovative French designed landing gear , the Jaguar as built also incorporated major elements designed by BAC - notably the wing and high lift devices . Production of the aircraft components would be split between Breguet and BAC and these would be assembled on two production lines ; one in the UK and one in France , There would be no duplication of work ; each component for the aircraft had only one source . The British trainer requirement had been more demanding , requiring supersonic performance and superior avionics ; as a result , the Br . 121 needed a thinner wing , increased weapon load and more power , the latter to meet the RAF ' s ferry range of . A separate partnership was made between Rolls - Royce and Turbomeca to develop the Adour afterburning turbofan engine . The Br . 121 was proposed with Turbomeca ' s Tourmalet engine for ECAT but Breguet preferred the RR RB . 172 and their joint venture would use elements of both . The new engine , which would be used for the AFVG as well , would be built in Derby and Tarnos . Previous collaborative efforts between Britain and France had been complicated – the AFVG programme ended in cancellation , and controversy surrounded the development of the supersonic airliner Concorde . Whilst the technical collaboration between BAC and Breguet went well , when Dassault took over Breguet in 1971 it encouraged acceptance of its own designs , such as the Super Étendard naval attack aircraft and the Mirage F1 , for which it would receive more profit , over the Anglo - French Jaguar . The initial plan was for Britain to buy 150 Jaguar " B " trainers , with its strike requirements being met by the advanced BAC - Dassault AFVG aircraft , with France to buy 75 " E " trainers ( " école " ) and 75 " A " single - seat strike attack aircraft ( " appui " ) . Dassault favoured its own Mirage G aircraft above the collaborative AFVG , and in June 1967 , France cancelled the AFVG on cost grounds . This left a gap in the RAF ' s planned strike capabilities for the 1970s ; at the same time as France ' s cancellation of the AFVG , Germany was expressing a serious interest in the Jaguar , and thus the design became more oriented towards the low - level strike role . By October 1970 , the RAF ' s requirements had changed to 165 single - seat strike aircraft and 35 trainers . The Jaguar was to replace the McDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR2 in the close air support , tactical reconnaissance and tactical strike roles , freeing the Phantom to be used for air defence . Both the French and British trainer requirements had developed significantly , and were eventually fulfilled instead by the Alpha Jet and Hawker Siddeley Hawk respectively . The French , meanwhile , had chosen the Jaguar to replace the Aeronavale ' s Dassault Étendard IV , and increased their order to include an initial 40 of a carrier - capable maritime version of the Jaguar , the Jaguar M , for the " Aeronavale " . From these apparently disparate aims would come a single and entirely different aircraft : relatively high - tech , supersonic , and optimised for ground - attack in a high - threat environment . Prototypes . The first of eight prototypes flew on 8 September 1968 , a two - seat design fitted with the first production model Adour engine . This aircraft later went supersonic on its third flight but was lost on landing on 26 March 1970 following an engine fire . The second prototype flew in February 1969 ; a total of three prototypes appeared in flight at the Paris Air Show that year . The first French " A " prototype flew in March 1969 . In October a British " S " conducted its first flight . An " M " prototype flew in November 1969 . The " M " had a strengthened airframe , an arrestor hook and different undercarriage : twin nosewheel and single mainwheels . After testing in France it went to RAE at Thurleigh for carrier landing trials from their land based catapult . In July 1970 it made real take offs and landings from the French carrier " Clemenceau " . From these trials there were doubts about the throttle response in case of an aborted landing ; the shipboard testing has also revealed problems with the aircraft ' s handling when flying on one engine , although planned engine improvements were to have rectified these problems . The " M " was considered a suitable replacement for the Etendard IV but the " Aeronavale " would only be able to purchase 60 instead of 100 aircraft . Furthermore , the Jaguar M was expensive , limiting the size of the force the French Navy could afford . In 1971 , Dassault proposed the Super Étendard , claiming that it was a simpler and cheap development of the existing Étendard IV , and in 1973 , the French Navy agreed to order it instead of the Jaguar , although rising costs of the Super Étendard meant that only 71 of the planned 100 aircraft were purchased . The M was cancelled by the French government in 1973 . Design . Overview . The Jaguar is an orthodox single - seat , swept - wing , twin - engine monoplane design , with tall tricycle type retractable landing gear . In its original configuration , it had a maximum take - off weight in the 15 tonne class ; and could manage a combat radius on internal fuel alone of , giving the Jaguar a greater operational range than competitor aircraft such as the Mikoyan MiG - 27 . The aircraft had hardpoints fitted for an external weapons load of up to 10 , 000 lb ( 4 , 500 kg ) , typical weapons fitted included the MATRA LR . F2 rocket pod , BAP 100 - mm bombs , MATRA AS37 anti - radar missiles , AIM - 9 Sidewinder missiles , and Rockeye cluster bombs . The RAF ' s Jaguars gained several new weapons during the Gulf War , including CRV7 high - velocity rockets and American CBU - 87 cluster bomb s . Finally the Jaguar was equipped with either a pair of French DEFA cannon s , or alternatively British Aden cannon s . The Jaguar International had the unusual optional provision for overwing pylons , used for short - range air - to - air missiles , such as the Matra R550 Magic or the AIM - 9 Sidewinder . This option frees up the under - wing pylons for other weapons and stores . RAF Jaguars gained overwing pylons in the build up to Operation Granby in 1990 , but French Jaguars were not modified . The RAF ' s Jaguar 97s were intended to be wired for the carriage of ASRAAM s on the overwing launchers , but clearance of this weapon was never completed due to funding cuts . Engine . The SEPECAT Jaguar is powered by the Rolls - Royce Turbomeca Adour turbofan engine , which was developed in parallel and primarily for the Jaguar . A separate partnership was made between Rolls - Royce and Turbomeca to develop the Adour , a two - shaft turbofan engine equipped with afterburners . Twin engines were selected for survivability ; ease of maintenance was a major consideration , an engine change being possible within 30 minutes . For the Jaguars it needed a high - bypass capable of high thrust for take - off , supersonic flight and low level " dashes " . When the first prototype Jaguar flew on 8 September 1968 , it was also the first flight for the engine . In its initial development the Adour engine had complications with the stability of the afterburner system , and shipboard testing showed slow throttle response times , problematic in the situation of an aborted landing ; engine improvements rectified these problems prior to the Jaguar coming into service . In French service , the Jaguars were introduced using the original Mk . 101 engine . RAF Jaguars entered service using the Mk . 102 engine , mainly featuring better afterburner - throttle control over the Mk . 101 . in 1974 , the RAF later had their Jaguars re - engined around 1983 with improved Adour Mk . 104 , and again in 1999 with the Mk . 106 , each providing greater performance . The Adour was developed into both afterburning and non - afterburning models ; the BAE Hawk , which had beaten the Jaguar to fulfill the Air Staff Target 362 trainer requirement , also adopted the non - afterburning Adour engine developed for the Jaguar . The Adour engine found use in several aircraft abroad , such as the McDonnell Douglas T - 45 Goshawk , the Mitsubishi T - 2 , and the Mitsubishi F - 1 ( which resembles the Jaguar ) . Even following the Jaguar ' s retirement in Europe , the Adour continues to be an active product with new variants being developed . As of Feb 2013 , the Indian Air Force was considering the fitting of 125 Jaguars with new Honeywell F125IN engines Avionics . While in operational theatres such as the Gulf War the Jaguar proved to be mechanically more reliable than the Panavia Tornado , the aircraft ' s avionics were a hindrance to conducting missions . Due to the Jaguar ' s original shortcomings in navigation and target acquisition , French Jaguars had to be escorted by Dassault Mirage F1 CR reconnaissance aircraft to act as guides for the Jaguars , Jaguars had provided a valuable component of the campaign , the RAF detachment of 12 Jaguars flew 612 combat sorties , with no aircraft being lost . Significant changes were made both during and shortly after the war . Due to obsolete navigational systems being unable to provide the accuracy required , both French and British Jaguars were quickly modified with Global Positioning System ( GPS ) receivers , a recent technology at the time . Prior to 1995 NATO bombing campaign in Bosnia and Herzegovina known as Operation " Deliberate Force " , a dozen Jaguars were upgraded with the capability to carry the TIALD laser designator pod and redesignated " Jaguar GR1B " or " T2B " respectively . Shortly afterwards , the RAF upgraded its Jaguar fleet to a common standard , incorporating TIALD and the ability to use new reconnaissance pods . The interim GR3 ( " Jaguar 96 " ) upgrade added a new HUD , a new hand controller and stick top , integrated GPS and TERPROM Terrain Referenced Navigation . The further upgraded " Jaguar GR3A " introduced the new EO GP1 ( JRP ) digital reconnaissance pod , a helmet mounted sight , improved cockpit displays , a datalink , and improved night vision goggles compatibility . A single Jaguar was converted into the " Jaguar Active Control Technology " ( ACT ) with fly - by - wire controls and aerodynamic alterations to the airframe ; the aerodynamic instability improved manoeuvrability and the test data was used in the development of the Eurofighter . Operational history . France . The " Armée de l ' Air " took delivery of the first production Jaguar in 1973 , one of an eventual 160 single - seat " Jaguar A " s . For type conversion training , France also took 40 of the two - seat " Jaguar E " . While the Jaguar was capable of carrying a single AN - 52 nuclear bomb , the French government did not assign any Jaguars for use in the " Force de frappe " , France ' s strategic nuclear deterrent ; this task was carried out by the Dassault Mirage IV , and the later Mirage 2000 - N . Nuclear armed Jaguars were instead assigned the " Pre - Strategic " role , to clear a path for the Strategic strike force . The AN - 52 nuclear bomb was retired from service in September 1991 , when the formerly nuclear - armed squadrons of Escadron de Chasse 7 then concentrated on conventional attack . French Jaguars also performed in the role of Electronic Counter Measures ( ECM ) aircraft , bearing the Martel anti - radiation missile , capable of staying airborne to suppress enemy defences for long periods of time through mid air refuelling . In French service , Jaguar was frequently deployed in defence of national interests in Africa during the 1970s , a policy sometimes referred to as " Jaguar diplomacy " ( " la diplomatie du Jaguar " ) . Jaguars made their combat debut against Polisario Front forces in Mauritania in December 1977 , as part of Opération Lamantin . In August 1978 a conventionally armed rapid reaction squadron was established , intended to deploy in support of French forces and interests to anywhere in the world . France had been involved in the conflict in Chad for many years , and 2 , 000 men of the " Force d ' Intervention " along with helicopters and Jaguars were deployed to defend central Chad in 1978 , further forces arriving later as part of Opération Tacaud . The Jaguars were engaged in May and June 1978 , contributing significantly in halting an offensive by Goukouni Oueddei ' s FROLINAT forces , who were routed . One aircraft was shot down , but the pilot was recovered by helicopter . In support of the further military action in the region , known as Operation Manta , Jaguars were deployed to Bangui , Central African Republic , in 1983 , before being rebased inside Chad at N ' Djamena International Airport . On 25 January 1984 , Jaguars attacked a rebel column that was withdrawing after raiding the town of Zigey . One aircraft was shot down and the pilot , Captain Michel Croci , was killed ; the Libyans denied involvement . The " Manta " forces were withdrawn in 1984 , as part of a de - escalation agreement , whereby both Libyan and French forces were to be withdrawn from Chad . The Libyans did not respect the agreement , and Jaguars returned to Chad in 1986 , as part of Operation Epervier , this time with a more forceful role . On 16 February 1986 , 11 Jaguars , escorted by Mirage F - 1 fighters and supported by C - 135F tankers and Breguet Atlantic aircraft , launched a raid on the airfield at Wadi Doum , which the Libyans had constructed in Northern Chad , using BAP - 100 anti - runway bombs . In response to Libyan incursions , another strike was carried out on 7 January 1987 , when a Jaguar destroyed a Libyan radar with a Martel missile . The Jaguars stationed at Ndjamena were an objective for Libyan sabotage due to their effectiveness against enemy forces , but the attempts were unsuccessful . As France was not a full member of NATO , joint operations with British Jaguars were limited in the 1980s . Jaguars from France were dispatched to participate in several coalition campaigns in the 1990s , from the 1991 Gulf War to the 1999 Kosovo conflict . In Operation Deliberate Force , the NATO bombing campaign over Bosnia in 1995 , six Jaguars , based in Italy , conducted 63 strike missions . The last Jaguars in French service were retired in 2005 , being replaced in the ground attack roles by the Dassault Rafale . United Kingdom . The RAF accepted delivery of the first of 165 single - seat " Jaguar GR1 " s ( the service designation of the " Jaguar S " ) with 54 ( F ) squadron in 1974 . These were supplemented by 35 two - seat trainers , the " Jaguar T2 " ( previously " Jaguar B " ) . The Jaguar S and B had a more comprehensive nav / attack system than the A and E models used by the " Armée de l ' Air " . RAF Jaguars were used for rapid deployment and regional reinforcement , and others flew in the tactical nuclear strike role , carrying the WE . 177 bomb . Beginning in 1975 with 6 Squadron , followed by 54 Squadron based at RAF Coltishall , and a ' Shadow squadron ' , a reserve unit with a peacetime training role 226 OCU based at RAF Lossiemouth , Jaguar squadrons were declared operational to SACEUR with the British nuclear weapon WE . 177 . 14 Squadron and 17 Squadron based at RAF Bruggen followed by 1977 . 20 Squadron and 31 Squadron also based at RAF Bruggen brought the RAF Jaguar force to its peak strength of six squadrons plus the OCU , each of twelve aircraft equipped with eight WE . 177 nuclear weapons . Two further squadrons , 2 Squadron and 41 Squadron based at RAF Laarbruch and RAF Coltishall respectively , were primarily tasked with tactical reconnaissance . From 1975 the OCU ' s wartime role was as an operational squadron in the front line assigned to SACEUR with 12 Jaguar aircraft , eight WE . 177 nuclear bombs , and a variety of conventional weapons . In April 1975 , a single Jaguar was used to test the aircraft ' s rough airstrip capacity , by landed and taking off multiple times from the M55 motorway , the final test flight was conducted with a full weapons load ; the ability was never used in service but was considered useful as improvised runways might be the only runways left available in a large - scale European conflict . In a high - intensity European war the role of the Jaguar was to support land forces on the Continent in resisting a Soviet assault on Western Europe , striking targets beyond the forward edge of the battlefield should a conflict escalate . The apparent mismatch between aircraft numbers and nuclear bombs was a consequence of RAF staff planners concluding that there would be one - third attrition of Jaguars in an early conventional phase , leaving the survivors numerically strong enough to deliver the entire allocated stockpile of 56 nuclear bombs . From December 1983 75 Jaguar GR1s and 14 T2s were updated to the GR1A and T2A standards with FIN1064 navigation and attack systems replacing the original NAVWASS . At about the same time , most were also re - engined with Adour 104 engines and were fitted with the ability to carry Sidewinder air - to - air missiles or AN - ALQ - 101 ( V ) - 10 electronic countermeasures pods under the wings . The RAF Jaguar force was altered in late 1984 , when 17 Squadron , 20 Squadron and 31 Squadron exchanged their Jaguars for Tornado GR1s , although their assignment to SACEUR and their wartime role remained unchanged . The two other RAF Germany units , 14 Squadron and 2 Squadron , followed suit in 1985 and 1989 respectively , which left the operational Jaguar force concentrated in 6 , 41 and 54 Squadrons at RAF Coltishall . In 1991 12 RAF Jaguars participated in the Gulf War . In 1994 , in order to meet an urgent need to increase the number of aircraft able to designate targets for laser - guided bomb s , 10 GR1As and two T2As were upgraded with the capability to carry the TIALD laser designator pod and redesignated " Jaguar GR1B " or " T2B " respectively . TIALD equipped Jaguar GR1Bs were deployed to Italy in August to take part in Operation " Deliberate Force " against Bosnian Serb forces , being used to designate targets for RAF Harriers . During the Bosnian operations , a Jaguar of 41 Squadron carried out the first RAF bombing raid in Europe since the end of the Second World War fifty years before . Following the success of the GR1B / T2B upgrade , the RAF launched a plan to upgrade its Jaguar fleet to a common standard , incorporating improvements introduced to some aircraft during the Gulf War , together with adding the ability to use TIALD and new reconnaissance pods . The upgrade came in two parts ; the interim GR3 ( " Jaguar 96 " ) upgrade added a new HUD , a new hand controller and stick top , integrated GPS and TERPROM Terrain Referenced Navigation . It was delivered in two standards , for recce and TIALD . The further upgraded " Jaguar GR3A " ( also known as " Jaguar 97 " ) introduced fleet - wide compatibility with TIALD and the new EO GP1 ( JRP ) digital reconnaissance pod , a helmet mounted sight , improved cockpit displays , a datalink , and improved Night vision goggles compatibility . All GR3As were subsequently re - engined with the new Adour 106 turbofan . The Jaguars did not see service in the 2003 Iraq War ; they had been planned to operate from bases in Turkey , to the north of Iraq , but Turkey refused access to its airbases and the northern attack was cancelled . Demands by the UK Treasury to cut the defence budget led to Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon detailing plans on 21 July 2004 to withdraw the Jaguar by 2007 . An expected date of October 2007 for the out of service date was brought forward at just five days notice to 30 April 2007 . On 20 December 2007 , a Jaguar operated by Qinetiq undertook the last ever British military Jaguar flight . India . India had been approached as a possible customer for the Jaguar as early as 1968 , but had declined , partly on the grounds that it was not yet clear if the French and British would themselves accept the aircraft into service . A decade later they would become the largest single export customer , with a $ 1 billion order for the aircraft in 1978 , the Jaguar being chosen ahead of the Dassault Mirage F1 and the Saab Viggen after a long and difficult evaluation process . The order involved 40 Jaguars built in Europe at Warton , and 120 licence - built aircraft from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited ( HAL ) under the local name " Shamsher " ( " Sword of Justice " ) . As an interim measure , 18 Royal Air Force Jaguars were loaned to the Indian Air Force , with the first two loaned aircraft operational with Western Air Command on 27 July 1979 . The second batch of aircraft for the Indian Air Force were 40 Jaguar Internationals built at Warton , the first aircraft being delivered in March 1981 . Batch Three was the assembly of another 45 aircraft by HAL of kits shipped from the United Kingdom , the first kit being shipped to India in May 1981 . In the following phases more aircraft would be built in India with less European content . Indian Jaguars were used to carry out reconnaissance missions in support of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990 . They later played an active role in the 1999 Kargil War with Pakistan , dropping both unguided and laser - guided bombs , the IAF defining its role as a " deep penetrating strike aircraft " . The Jaguar is also used in small numbers for the anti - ship role , equipped with the Sea Eagle missile . The Jaguar remains an important element of the Indian military as , along with the Mirage 2000 , the Jaguar has been described as one of the few aircraft capable of performing the nuclear strike role with reasonable chances of success . It has been alleged that the Indian military rejected developing the Jaguar into an active nuclear platform due to a lack of ground clearance for deploying India ' s gravity - dropped nuclear bombs . As the aircraft aged , the avionics were viewed as lacking suitable components for the ground attack mission such as terrain - following radar , GPS navigation , and modern night - flight systems ; consequently , several upgrades were carried out in the mid - 1990s , including the addition of the Litening targeting pod . India placed an order for 17 additional upgraded Jaguar aircraft from Hindustan Aeronautics in 1999 and a further 20 in 2001 – 2002 . The Indian Air Force plans to upgrade up to 125 Jaguars starting in 2013 by upgrading the avionics ( including multi mode radar , auto - pilot and other changes ) as part of the DARIN III program and additionally is considering fitting more powerful engines , Honeywell F125IN to improve performance , particularly at medium altitudes . Gulf War . Following the invasion of Kuwait , on 9 August 1990 the British government assigned an initial 12 Jaguar GR1A and 12 Tornado F3 aircraft to the Middle East in Operation Granby , these aircraft operated from bases in Oman and Bahrain . On 23 August 1990 , a squadron of Tornado GR1 interdictors were dispatched to the region as well , but the Tornado GR1 was difficult to keep operational due to heat . Blackburn Buccaneer s were dispatched in January 1991 to act as laser designators for the ground strike aircraft . The RAF ' s Jaguars gained several new weapons during the Gulf War , including CRV7 high - velocity rockets and American CBU - 87 cluster bomb s which were used because the RAF ' s existing BL755 bombs were designed for low - level release , and therefore unsuitable for higher - altitude operations common over the Gulf . The RAF ' s detachment of 12 Jaguars flew 612 combat sorties , with no aircraft being lost . " XZ364 " " Sadman " flew 47 missions ; the highest number of missions of any aircraft . France also committed military assets to the coalition ; in October 1990 8 Jaguar A aircraft along with several Dassault Mirage F1 CR reconnaissance aircraft were sent to the Middle East , with the Mirages , which had more advanced avionics , acting as guides for the Jaguars . Due to obsolete navigational systems being unable to provide the accuracy required , both French and British Jaguars were quickly modified with GPS receivers , RAF Tornadoes also required adaption to a lesser extent . The French Jaguar force in Saudi Arabia built up to a maximum of 28 aircraft , which carried out 615 combat sorties , with one Jaguar damaged by an Iraqi surface - to - air missile . Typical targets were Iraqi armoured units , Scud missile sites , and naval vessels . On 15 January 1991 , 12 French Jaguars bombed Ahmed Al Jaber Air Base , Kuwait ; three were damaged in the attack but all returned to base . On 26 January , RAF Jaguars and Tornadoes raided several Silkworm missile batteries in Kuwait to encourage the perception of an imminent amphibious invasion to liberate the country . On the 30th two RAF Jaguars destroyed a " Polnochny " - class landing ship with rockets and cannon . The Iraqi Republican Guard , entrenched on the Kuwait - Saudi border , were subjected to a continuous intensive bombing campaign for weeks to demoralise them , allied Jaguars forming a portion of the delivering aircraft . The Jaguars also performed valuable reconnaissance of the combat area for Coalition forces . Both nations ' Jaguars were withdrawn from the region in March 1991 , at the end of Desert Storm . Other operators . Early in development , the Jaguar was intended for exporting abroad as well as for the purposes of the developing nations . In 1969 , while still within the prototype stage of development , formal approaches had been made to Switzerland , India , Japan , Australia , the Netherlands , Belgium , and Germany , promoting the aircraft for sale . Japan began negotiations towards licenced production of the Jaguar , but these plans failed in part due to the high royalty payments sought by SEPECAT . A proposal for Turkey to construct Jaguars under licence for their own air force also did not come to fruition . Attempts to export to Kuwait and Pakistan did not transfer into orders . Kuwait initially ordered 50 Jaguars and 16 Mirage 5s , but instead firmed up for F1s . Pakistan approached SEPECAT after the US refused to sell their aircraft of choice , the LTV A - 7 Corsair II , due to an arms embargo ; Pakistan eventually opted for Mirage 5s . Jaguars were successfully sold to a number of overseas countries , India being the most prolific operator . The " Jaguar International " was an export version which was sold to Ecuador , Nigeria and Oman . The Ecuadorian Air Force , the only Latin American export customer , purchased 10 single - and 2 two - seat variants , officially designated " Jaguars ES " and " EB " , respectively . The first of twelve aircraft arrived in January 1977 . They were used mainly for ground attack roles and occasionally for air superiority duties during the Cenepa War with Peru in 1995 , but the main part of the fleet was held on reserve in case of a wider conflict with the Peruvians . Nigeria ordered 13 single - seat " SN " and 5 two - seat " BN " variants ; SEPECAT delivered the first of these in May 1984 . A subsequent order for an 18 - aircraft second batch was cancelled . Some of those in service were withdrawn from operations on the grounds of economy , with the remaining aircraft put up for re - sale . The Royal Air Force of Oman , like Ecuador , ordered 10 single - seat and 2 two - seat variants , designated " Jaguars OS " and " OB " , respectively ; the first was delivered in March 1977 . A second identical 12 - aircraft order was placed in the mid - 1980s ; these were joined by two ex - IAF and ex - RAF examples .