The 400th Eurofighter Typhoon have been dropped at the Programme’s worldwide customer base. The German Air Force took delivery of the 400th aircraft on Wednesday 4th December 2013 during special ceremony at Cassidian’s Military Air Systems Center in Manching, Southern Germany.
At the Ceremony, the State Secretary of the German Ministry of Defence, Christian Schmidt, received the aircraft with the markings ‘31+06’. The development was witnessed by several high ranking representatives from politics and industry including: the Bavarian Minister for Economic Affairs, Media, Energy and Technology, Ilse Aigner; the executive Executive Officer of Cassidian, Bernhard Gerwert, and representatives from the British, Spanish and Italian Eurofighter Partner Companies.
Alberto Gutierrez, Chief Executive Officer of Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH, said: “The delivery of the 400th Eurofighter Typhoon marks a historic milestone in Europe’s largest defence programme. Now we must focus a lot more strongly on export campaigns so that you can win new contracts and new customers for this outstanding aircraft. Straight away, especially within the se difficult times in the defence industry, it’s more important than ever that we arise and count. That’s what today is all about.”
The General Manager of NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency (NETMA), Jesus Pinillos, added: “Eurofighter Typhoon secures the airspace of six nations 24 hours an afternoon, seven days per week even under extreme arctic climatic conditions at the Falkland Islands. The aircraft has proven itself as a competent backbone of the Air Forces in Germany, Italy, Spain, and within the UK in addition to in Austria and Saudi Arabia. The reliability of the Eurofighter Typhoon in its global missions has surpassed expectations.”
The Chief Executive Officer of Cassidian, Bernhard Gerwert, said: “As a partner within the Eurofighter consortium, we’re proud that we have got assembled the 400th Eurofighter and that today we will surrender to the German Air Force its 112 aircraft. Our customers are fully convinced of the performance of the Eurofighter Typhoon. The foremost modern combat aircraft on the earth may also be a major a part of the product portfolio within the new Division “Airbus Defence and Space.”
The delivery of the first actual Eurofighter to the Royal Air Force within the Uk passed off end of 2003. The 100th Eurofighter was delivered also to the Royal Air Force in September 2006. The 200th aircraft was handed over in November 2009 to the German Air Force. The 300th aircraft was dropped at the Spanish Air Force in November 2011.
In the past 10 years the worldwide Eurofighter fleet has demonstrated its high operational effectiveness in international missions and trainings and accumulated greater than 210,000 flying hours. Several developments equivalent to the Phase 1 Enhancement, the mixing of the METEOR air-to-air missile, the recent electronic radar (E-Scan) and extra weaponry increase the capabilities of the Eurofighter Typhoon and secure the way forward for this contemporary combat aircraft inside the next decades.
At present, the Eurofighter Typhoon fleet comprises 20 operating units with locations in Europe, the South Atlantic and the center East. Specifically there are: 7 units within the UK (4 in Coningsby, 2 in Leuchars and 1 in Mount Pleasant, Falkland Islands); 5 in Italy (2 in Grosseto, 2 in Gioia del Colle, 1 in Trapani); 3 in Germany (Laage, Neuburg and Nörvenich), in addition to 3 in Spain (2 in Morón, 1 in Albacete) and one each in Austria (Zeltweg) and Saudi Arabia.
Eurofighter Typhoon is essentially the mostsome of the most advanced new generation multi-role/swing-role combat aircraft currently available at the world market. Seven nations (Germany, the uk, Italy, Spain, Austria, Saudi Arabia and Oman) have already ordered the Eurofighter Typhoon. With 719 aircraft under contract and 571 on order, Eurofighter Typhoon is currently the most important military procurement programme in Europe. Its high technology strengthens the placement of European aerospace industry inside the international market. The programme secures greater than 100,000 jobs in over 400 companies.
Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH manages the programme on behalf of the Eurofighter Partner Companies Alenia Aermacchi/Finmeccanica, BAE Systems and Cassidian in Germany and Spain, that are the major aviation and aerospace companies in Europe with a turnover of about 126 billion euro (2012).
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