Eurofighter TyphoonEurofighter Typhoon is an agile, highly maneuverable, twin-engine strike fighter, designed primarily for air superiority and air supremacy missions, with secondary attack capability. The aircraft's ability to gain air superiority beyond visual range (BVR) and in close combat, and at the same time deliver high sortie rates against air, naval and ground targets in all weathers with a variety of weapons, demands close attention to pilot workload. In Eurofighter the pilot flies through use of a computerized flight control system, which offers full carefree handling.
The Eurofighter consortium is under contract to deliver 620 aircraft to the four Partner nations - 180 for Germany, 121 for Italy, 87 for Spain and 232 for the United Kingdom. An additional export order of 18 aircraft for Austria began delivery in July 2007. By the end of May 2007 120 Eurofighter Typhoon have been delivered to seven units in four nations. The nations’ fleets have accumulated over 20,000 flight hours by that date, addito to the about 5,200 test flight hours accumulated by the industry fleet.
The aircraft is developed and produced by the Eurofigther consortium, which includes Alenia Aeronautica, BAE SYSTEMS, EADS Germany and EADS CASA., of the four partner countries, Italy, United Kingdom, Germany and Spain. 105 production aircraft have been delivered to date including five Instrumented Production Aircraft operated by industry and owned by the NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency NETMA.
The Typhoon began its air force career as an air superiority fighter, but in recent months it is beginning to unlock its multi-role potential. NATO Eurofighter Tornado Management Agency (NETMA) has committed to the first phase of the Tranche 2 forward development program providing for precision attack capability for the Typhoon, introduction of Paveway IV and Enhanced GBU-16 alongside work to integrate a Laser Designator Pod. Combined with the Type Acceptance of the Block 5 aircraft, the enhanced ground equipment for use with the Block 5 standard is now cleared for use, including a more capable version the Ground Support System.
Block 5 CapabilitiesBlock 5 supports full air-to-air and initial air-to-ground capabilities. The aircraft is cleared for the 9g envelope as intended, with additional features such as sensor fusion, the full Direct Voice Input, enhanced GPS, and Defensive Aids Sub-System (DASS) countermeasures including automatic chaff and flare dispensers. The radar air-to-surface modes are enhanced with ground mapping, and the aircraft also provides initial FLIR (Forward Looking Infra-Red) capability. Block 5 Eurofighter Typhoon is cleared to carry AMRAAM, ASRAAM, IRIS-T and AIM-9L air-to-air missiles, as well as Paveway II laser-guided bombs and GBU-16s. External fuel tanks are certified for supersonic flight, while air-to-air refueling is cleared for all customer specified tanker types. The Italian Air Force received its first Block 5 aircraft in August 2007.
Tranche 2 Production Phase:254 of the total 620 production Typhoons will be "Tranche 2" standard. Additional aircraft are expected to be delivered to Saudi-Arabia under a recently agreed arms procurement program. Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft production will soon progress to the next stage, with the beginning of final assembly of the initial Tranche 2 standard aircraft, expected by the year's end. The first aircraft of this advanced configuration will be the 29th single seat aircraft to be produced for the German Air Force.
This aircraft, designated IPA 7 will be instrumented for flight testing of Tranche 2 Block 8 capabilities and is scheduled to make its first flight by 2008. A British Trench 1 aircraft has already been configured with Tranche 2 standard avionics and is used for avionic tests at RAF Warton. The RAF will be the first service to get Tranche 2 Typhoons, expected to be delivered by late 2008.
Further enhancements are currently considered within the Main Development Contract (MDC), currently in final negotiation, formulating the roadmap for the integration of future capabilities. Another future enhancement will include the fielding of the e-scan AESA radar capability. Recently, the Euroradar consortium conducted the first flights of the CAESAR (Captor Active Electronically Scanning Array Radar) antenna in Development Aircraft Five (DA5) at Manching, Germany.
Tranche 1 Upgrades:The R2 Retrofit program is intended to bring all the earlier Typhoons up to the Block 5 standard. All 115 Tranche 1 Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft will be standardized through a series of "Capability Upgrade" projects. Aircraft in Blocks 1, 2 and 2B, are now being upgraded to Block 5 capability, also known as Final Operational Capability (FOC), in order to maximize the aircraft capability at the national fleet level. Upgrades will be included in scheduled maintenance activities to enhance overall fleet availability.
The first non-Block 5 aircraft to be brought to FOC standard is BS021, the 21st single seater of UK production. Only a few days later, German aircraft GS019 joined the program. Both are Block 2B aircraft. This functionality standard represents the full air-to-air functionality, whereas Block 5 includes this plus the enhanced carefree handling air-to-ground capability to drop laser guided bombs. As of February 2007, six aircraft are undergoing retrofits (three in Germany, two in the United Kingdom and one in Spain) with a seventh aircraft soon to join the project in the UK.
Priority in the R2 programme is on the upgrade of Block 2B aircraft, as less work is required to bring these aircraft to the higher performance level. By the end of 2007, the combination of Block 5 new aircraft deliveries and upgraded R2 aircraft will enable the Partner Air Forces to meet their NATO commitment goals.
Following on from Block 2B aircraft, Block 2 Eurofighter Typhoons with the initial air-to-air capability will be upgraded. Finally early Block 1 aircraft (all of them twin seaters) will enter the program. All Tranche 1 aircraft are scheduled to complete upgrade to Block 5 FOC standard by early 2012.
The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Defense has agreed an industrial participation program with Eurofighter GmbH for the future enhancement of the weapon system. With the evolving role of aerial attack in modern combat, Typhoon's strike capability is also being enhanced, with inclusion of relevant weapon systems, sensors, targeting and communications packages as part of the baseline aircraft. An important Typhoon feature is its capability to operate from hastily prepared bases and small runways for worldwide operations. The aircraft is equipped with an advanced multi-mode radar and an extensive range of sensors and electronic countermeasures.