Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Contains threads on Royal Air Force equipment of the past, present and future.


Timmymagic
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by Timmymagic »

The Armchair Soldier wrote:Who doesn't like a bit of BRRRT:
And to think the RAF were actiually looking to get rid of the 27mm on Typhoon...until they worked out that a concrete ballast to replace the 27mm would cost more to develop, trial and field than just leaving the guns in place...

sea_eagle
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by sea_eagle »

shark bait wrote:Typhoon needs lots on upgrades if Eurofighter want more sales. It can't compete on cost with the American jets or Grippen , and it cant compete on features against the F35.
Agreed! Some good news to cheer everyone up?
https://www.forces.net/news/raf/uk-anno ... olls-royce
The UK has signed a contract worth almost £350 million with Rolls-Royce for engine maintenance of the RAF's Typhoon fighter jets.
However can anyone shed light on what was delivered in previous 3 years?
The RAF's Typhoons have undergone a £425 million upgrade programme over the last three years.

SW1
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by SW1 »

sea_eagle wrote:However can anyone shed light on what was delivered in previous 3 years?
Project Centurion

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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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https://www.c4isrnet.com/global/europe/ ... r-upgrade/

WARTON — With a complex weapons integration program squared away, giving Royal Air Force Typhoon jets more punch, key sensors on the jet could see an upgrade.

The RAF’s test and evaluation squadron is already test flying the Litening 5 targeting pod in order to optimize its operation by Typhoon pilots. Work is also underway to update and improve the reliability of the jets Pirate passive infrared airborne track equipment, said Andy Flynn, BAE System’s Typhoon capability director.

Flynn said there were more than 50 separate candidate technologies being considered by the evolution review. Some of those potential upgrades could also find themselves cross decking to the Tempest sixth-generation fighter now being proposed by the British.

Clive Marrison, the industrial requirements director for Team Tempest, the industrial/government partnership leading the next-generation fighter work , said both jets could benefit from close development ties.

While the BAE executives were looking into the future for British combat air capabilities, the Typhoon approaches a landmark of sorts to be celebrated. Sixteen years after taking delivery of its first Typhoon, the RAF is preparing to receive the final aircraft ordered for its fleet in the next few weeks, said Flynn.

The final aircraft in a British order for 160 Typhoons made its test flight recently and is due to be handed over to the RAF in the coming weeks.

Lord Jim
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by Lord Jim »

Yep now BAe starts trying to tempt the MoD and Governments with all those really nice to have bits of kit from the options list. I suspect they have quite a few available and ready for installation already.

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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Not much gets out, but i think Litening V has been in the works for a while. Litening III replacement was in the pipeline for some time, and the V has some very noticeable reconnaissance capabilities beyond targeting, much more than the III, which would "solve" two problems at once, the second being the loss of RAPTOR.
You can even have side-scan SAR radar on the Litening V.

BriteCloud is being trialed already. The R2 radar has a budget line but also a lot of delays to report, and i don't know what the timeline for that one is.
The Common Weapon Launcher got some funding, but it's not clear if it will get in or not.
The development of a larger external fuel tank (believe 1800 L, but i should check to be sure) was on the cards but not sure on whether the RAF is taking that in...

And Striker II, of course. That would be nice.
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SW1
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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I believe the common launcher was cleared as part of the p3e upgrade.

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Gabriele
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by Gabriele »

That would be great, but unless it is what they are using for Brimstone carry (and only it), i don't think i've ever seen a photo of one flying.
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SW1
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... de-460293/

BAE Systems is advancing work on a new synthetic training capability that will be employed by the UK Royal Air Force’s Eurofighter Typhoon squadrons in less than two years.

Scheduled to achieve initial operating capability in April 2021, the new system will comprise three full mission simulators and three operational mission trainers installed at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, and two of each at the service’s Lossiemouth site in Scotland.

Once fully operational, the new equipment will support a system equally balanced between simulator-based activities and live flying, for a total of around 20 “training events” per month for each pilot. “You need to test the individual in the air sometimes… but there is better training in the synthetic environment,” Neill says. “The tactics we are using now are being observed,” he notes. “Offloading [live flying to the simulator] is not just about cost: it’s about security.”

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SKB
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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(Forces TV) 12 August 2019
The RAF's Typhoon jets have completed a three-year upgrade, already putting their systems to the test in the Baltics, Iraq and Syria. Project Centurion has taken BAE systems almost 1,000 days to provide the RAF's fighters with the latest missile and software performance.

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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by bobp »

Nice video, good to see how things are moving along.

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ArmChairCivvy
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by ArmChairCivvy »

The last one of the order for the RAF delivered.
Ever-lasting truths: Multi-year budgets/ planning by necessity have to address the painful questions; more often than not the Either-Or prevails over Both-And.
If everyone is thinking the same, then someone is not thinking (attributed to Patton)

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ArmChairCivvy
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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And the fleet renewal has been given a date (Oct issue of Desider):
"The MOD’s Combat Air Acquisition Programme seeking to replace capabilities currently provided by earlier models of Typhoon is intended to be one of the first new platforms to adopt Pyramid and is targeting an Initial Operating Capability by 2035."
Ever-lasting truths: Multi-year budgets/ planning by necessity have to address the painful questions; more often than not the Either-Or prevails over Both-And.
If everyone is thinking the same, then someone is not thinking (attributed to Patton)

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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Timmymagic
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by Timmymagic »

Looks like Germany is going to move forward with new Typhoon production...



And Spain and Germany are moving forward with AESA radar, this appears to be Radar 1 NOT the UK's preferred Radar 2. There was speculation that Germany was more interested in Radar 2.


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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Looks like Germany/Airbus are also starting to look at Typhoon as a replacement for the Tornado ECR. Looks like it will require additional pylons plumbed for tanks in this configuration......and they've added Spear-EW....suspect this is just speculative, but is it signalling German interest? Surprised they didn't have AARGM on it due to Italian usage and German interest.


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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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I do hope the contractual position means the UK receives some re-imbursement or commercial benefit from all of the work the UK has done to bring Typhoon to this position...


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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Timmymagic wrote:I do hope the contractual position means the UK receives some re-imbursement or commercial benefit from all of the work the UK has done to bring Typhoon to this position...

I share your hopes but fear the Italians and us are likely to find the climate in Eurofighter GmbH decidedly frosty towards Team Tempest members.

Wouldn't surprise me greatly if talk of Tranche 3B commitments are resurrected now that it suits German procurement plans. The existing Luftwaffe 143 + 33 new orders take them close to their original commitment of 180. Last time I checked Airbus D&S still had a further 72 for the UK on its order books.

I somehow don't see £7bn worth of additional Typhoons in our near future...

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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Timmymagic wrote:And Spain and Germany are moving forward with AESA radar, this appears to be Radar 1 NOT the UK's preferred Radar 2. There was speculation that Germany was more interested in Radar 2.
Timmy, what's the difference between the two radars?

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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Jensy wrote:the Italians and us are likely to find the climate in Eurofighter GmbH decidedly frosty towards Team Tempest members
- SETTING THIS INTO THE "RADAR CONTEXT"
- that is where the Tempest & Eurofighter have now, officially, parted ways
... still the "same" planes. BUT come 2035?
Ever-lasting truths: Multi-year budgets/ planning by necessity have to address the painful questions; more often than not the Either-Or prevails over Both-And.
If everyone is thinking the same, then someone is not thinking (attributed to Patton)

Timmymagic
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Ron5 wrote:Timmy, what's the difference between the two radars?
Not a spectacular amount is known. But apparently the 'Radar 2' is the Captor-E with additional capabilities from the UK's Brightadder programme and possibly a new antenna arrangement, including electronic attack and communications. The story goes that when the UK got a look at the APG-81 for the F-35 they wanted additional capabilities added to Captor-E. For the UK to go off on its own they must be seen as very important.

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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

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Jensy wrote:I share your hopes but fear the Italians and us are likely to find the climate in Eurofighter GmbH decidedly frosty towards Team Tempest members.
Thats unlikely. The UK and Italy own 54% of Eurofighter GmbH. They call the shots. Airbus has 46%.
Jensy wrote:Last time I checked Airbus D&S still had a further 72 for the UK on its order books.
The 72 for the UK were transferred to Saudi Arabia.

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Jensy
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Re: Eurofighter Typhoon (RAF)

Post by Jensy »

Timmymagic wrote: Thats unlikely. The UK and Italy own 54% of Eurofighter GmbH. They call the shots. Airbus has 46%.
Jensy wrote:Last time I checked Airbus D&S still had a further 72 for the UK on its order books.
The 72 for the UK were transferred to Saudi Arabia.
Was that ever officially agreed by all the countries in place of the original obligations?

Tranche 3b appeared to have been conveniently and quickly forgotten about by the EF partner Governments as the recession hit. I thought it might come back one day in the form of demands for government subsidies once the order pipeline ran dry.

We definitely have a strong standing in the company but at the governmental level things are always a lot more complicated. The Brexit environment does not give us a great negotiating position.
ArmChairCivvy wrote: - SETTING THIS INTO THE "RADAR CONTEXT"
- that is where the Tempest & Eurofighter have now, officially, parted ways
... still the "same" planes. BUT come 2035?
I think that process has been a long time coming. Until now it has been down to the different air forces' priorities.

Now the shift towards the different next Gen tribes will probably speed this split up. Could we start to see Italy and Britain getting a Gripen flavoured Typhoon, with the Germans and Spanish aircraft speaking with a French accent, who knows?

So long as there are two European, next-gen fighters, the Typhoon is always going to have an awkward middle age.

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