Mélanie fires missiles. Somewhat infrequently. That’s because since 2002, when she joined the French Air Force, there have been no enemy air threats against any French military operations. I met her on the disused air force base of Brétigny, just south of Paris, where she’d been rehearsing for the Bastille Day (14th July) parade with her surface-to-air defence squadron (EDSA), whose mission is to protect military installations and points of vital importance, and to support the ground forces. The squadron has also recently been given the responsibility for countering malicious airborne drones…