Libya procured a total of 36 Mirage F.1ADs to equip the Libyan Air Force, functioning as an air superiority fighter.
The base F.1AD model is a specialized strike variant that lacks the standard radar unit; it is instead outfitted with a retractable fuel probe mounted on the nose.
Four F.1ADs were subsequently upgraded into a multirole configuration.

Libyan Mirage F.1s participated in the war in Chad intensively and proved its worth during the Libyan campaigns during both 1981 and 1983; however, they were not used later as the Air Force held them back for an eventual anticipated confrontation with the US and its allies.
In August 1981, a large group of 70 Libyan aircraft, including Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23s, MiG-25s, Sukhoi Su-20s, Su-22Ms and Mirage F1s, approached a US Navy carrier battle group as a show of strength, they were escorted until their withdrawal from its vicinity by 14 McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom IIs and Grumman F-14 Tomcats.

When operating in Chad, the Mirage F1.ADs a typical combat configuration consisted of a pair 1.300 litre drop tanks and a pair of Belouga CBUs.
Operations were performed almost exclusively during daylight hours and from high altitudes, which resulted in limited effectiveness.
From 1981, a detachment was deployed at Marten es-Serra in southern Libya; from 1983, these Mirage F1s were regularly detached also to Faya-Largeau, in central northern Chad.
Together with Mirage 5s, Mirage F.1s were instrumental in the huge success enjoyed during different campaigns against the Chadian troops in the early 1980s: operating over the open and barren desert terrain, they caused heavy damage, making any larger troop movements very costly, for no losses in exchange.

The Mirage F1 fleet saw action during the 2011 Libyan Civil War.
The Libyan Air Force posed little threat to coalition forces, partially as a result of insufficient equipment and a heavy reliance upon older aircraft acquired from the Soviet Union, but remained effective against poorly armed anti-Gaddafi rebels.
On 21 February 2011, a pair of Libyan aircraft landed in Malta after they had been ordered to bomb protesters in Benghazi; both of the pilots claimed political asylum.
Following the death of Muammar Gaddafi and the end of the civil war, France and Libya formed an agreement in 2012 to modernise the remaining Mirage F1 fleet, as well as covering the potential purchase of additional Mirage F1s that had been formerly operated by the French Air Force.
Libya procured a total of 36 Mirage F.1ADs to equip the Libyan Air Force, functioning as an air superiority fighter. The base F.1AD model is a specialized strike variant that lacks the standard radar unit; it is instead outfitted with a retractable fuel probe mounted on the nose. Four F.1ADs were subsequently upgraded into a multirole configuration.
Libyan Mirage F.1s participated in the war in Chad intensively and proved its worth during the Libyan campaigns during both 1981 and 1983; however, they were not used later as the Air Force held them back for an eventual anticipated confrontation with the US and its allies. In August 1981, a large group of 70 Libyan aircraft, including Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23s, MiG-25s, Sukhoi Su-20s, Su-22Ms and Mirage F1s, approached a US Navy carrier battle group as a show of strength, they were escorted until their withdrawal from its vicinity by 14 McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom IIs and Grumman F-14 Tomcats.
When operating in Chad, the Mirage F1.ADs a typical combat configuration consisted of a pair 1.300 litre drop tanks and a pair of Belouga CBUs. Operations were performed almost exclusively during daylight hours and from high altitudes, which resulted in limited effectiveness. From 1981, a detachment was deployed at Marten es-Serra in southern Libya; from 1983, these Mirage F1s were regularly detached also to Faya-Largeau, in central northern Chad. Together with Mirage 5s, Mirage F.1s were instrumental in the huge success enjoyed during different campaigns against the Chadian troops in the early 1980s: operating over the open and barren desert terrain, they caused heavy damage, making any larger troop movements very costly, for no losses in exchange.
The Mirage F1 fleet saw action during the 2011 Libyan Civil War. The Libyan Air Force posed little threat to coalition forces, partially as a result of insufficient equipment and a heavy reliance upon older aircraft acquired from the Soviet Union, but remained effective against poorly armed anti-Gaddafi rebels. On 21 February 2011, a pair of Libyan aircraft landed in Malta after they had been ordered to bomb protesters in Benghazi; both of the pilots claimed political asylum. Following the death of Muammar Gaddafi and the end of the civil war, France and Libya formed an agreement in 2012 to modernise the remaining Mirage F1 fleet, as well as covering the potential purchase of additional Mirage F1s that had been formerly operated by the French Air Force.
Dassault Mirage F1