A
S AIRBUS DEFENCE and
Space looks towards a
manned Future Combat Air
System (FCAS) as a potential
all-new ghter for the 2040
era, the value of maintaining
a suitable industrial skills base in Europe
cannot be underestimated. Whether it
comes from FCAS, from partnerships
in Turkey with its TF-X project, or as afuture mid-life upgrade of the existing
Euro ghter Typhoon, industry leaders are
con dent that a new European ghter
could become a reality.
This partly stems from the success of
Euro ghter, and its journey from concept
to today’s reality o ers valuable lessons.
A four-nation European partnership was
the only way that such a costly project
could be realized, under the umbrella
of the NATO Euro ghter and Tornado
Management Agency (NETMA). While
it ultimately delivered a large eet
of common aircraft, it also served as
something of a millstone around the
necks of those who sought to push the
basic entry-into-service-standard Typhoon
forward. It was perhaps inevitable that
individual national requirements and
funding would be hard to align; indeed,
the partners were initially forced to settheir pace with that of the slowest ship in
the convoy.
Ultimately, the partnership has prevailed
and the bene ts of joint funding and
a coherent joint plan are now making
good their promise, albeit not always in
the swiftest of fashions. The early rigid
uniformity of the program has given way
to a more versatile approach that is better-
suited to embracing national aspirations,
and to accommodating a willingness
to share technology and fund spiral
development ambitions.Dispelling a dated view
The initial Tranche 1 Euro ghters were
rst handed over to operator air forces in- Initially optimized for the air-to-air
role, only now are we seeing the aircraft
reaching their potential as versatile,
combat-proven, all-rounders. The Royal Air
The Eurofi ghter Typhoon program has proved to be a huge
success for the European aerospace industry in terms of
capability development and export success — is this set
to continue?Cover image: A
Royal Air Force
Typhoon FGR4.
Jamie Hunter
Inset: BAE
Systems test pilot
Nat Makepeace
checks an inert
MBDA Meteor
beyond-visual
range air-to-air
missile pre-fl ight.
Jamie Hunter
Below: Quick
reaction alert
(QRA) and air
policing has
become a staple
for Eurofi ghter
squadrons
in Europe. In
addition, all four
partners have
embraced multi-
role to an extent.
the partners were initially forced to set Jamie HunterThe Eurofi ghter Typhoon program has proved to be a huge
success for the European aerospace industry in terms of
capability development and export success — is this set
to continue?EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON // INTRODUCTION
48 April 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net
48-49 SUPP_Intro C.indd 48 15/02/2018 13:38