Eurofighter Typhoon (EF2000)

History

The Eurofighter Typhoon represents many advantages and disadvantages in a multinational joint venture. While it appears to be an excellent end product on its own, brought about by years of data collection, research and development, the speed bumps encountered along the way are remarkable. The joint venture has enabled a lower-cost fighter jet that incorporates some of the latest technological advancements in military aircraft, but at the same time, the program has been plagued by delays from the start.

Regardless, the Typhoon is currently in service (albeit in limited numbers), but its scope and role on the battlefield is growing every year. As of this writing, hundreds of systems are on order, and a few examples have been deployed around the world (though none are in combat roles).

The export market was also just waking up with interest in the finished Eurofighter design. By the standards of modern jet fighters, the European consortium has delivered a capable winner of a war with few mounts in the skies today. Only time will tell if the effort is worth it.

ECF and ECA

The ECF (European Cooperative Fighter) program was established in 1979 between British Aerospace and the West German company Messerschmitt-Bolkow-Blohm, and later that year it received support from the French company Dassault - leading to a name change for the program Forced aircraft "ECA" for "European War". Different prototypes were being worked on in each country, but the joint venture soon disintegrated in 1981 due to changing needs and different design directions. The French stuck with the French SNEMA M88 engine (consistent with providing jobs to their own people), while the British were more interested in the improved British RB199 turbofan.

Amid growing divisions, West Germany is developing its own fighter jet.

The RAF Combat Requirements began to focus on the respective air defence and ground attack roles of their aging McDonnell F-4 Phantom II and SEPECAT Jaguar fighter jets. What was sought was a new single platform with multi-role capabilities.

The resulting need dictated a fast, agile, short-range offensive fighter, culminating in Air Staff Requirement (Air Force) 414.

Court of Audit and EAP

Following the dismemberment of the ECA program, BAe, MBB and Aeritalia (Italy) - please note, all members of the former Panavia Tornado consortium - jointly launched in April 1982 the initial design use of the Agile Combat Aircraft (ACA) program A canard front wing, two vertical tails and a delta wing assembly with swept back were created. The air intakes were located in the lower part of the fuselage under the nose, and the powerplant was based on the RB favored by the British. 199 engine. By then, the German and Italian governments had withdrawn funding from the project until the UK offered to fund up to 50% of the project.

The UK then commissioned BAe to produce the required ACA demonstrator for evaluation and validation under the name Experimental Aircraft Programme (EAP).

FEFA

In 1983, another new alliance was formed between the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, this time the program was called "Future Eurofighter" (or FEFA) to develop a BVR capable Aircraft (over-the-horizon) missile tracking and attack capability and STOL (short take-off and landing) quality. Only France wanted a viable element and expressed that desire, but at the same time asked for the option to lead the FEFA program.

So the UK, Germany and Italy went down a different route, forming their own EFA (Eurofighter) project, leaving the French to fend for themselves, and BAe was awarded a contract to develop a technology demonstrator in May 1983. The feasibility study was completed in July 1984.

BAe EAP

On August 2, 1985, the new consortium agreed in principle to build the "Eurofighter". France and Spain were more or less out of the game at this point.

While Spain weighs its options, France continues a domestic fighter program that will eventually produce the mighty Dassault Rafale multirole fighter. However, the planned cost of the EAP fighter increased and several challenges almost completely ended the project.

It doesn't help that Germany and Italy are reluctant to provide additional funding for the growing monster.

The final BAe product was shown at Wharton in April 1986. Eurofighter Jagdplane GmbH and Eurojet Turbo GmbH were established to manage the development of actual fighter jets and the development of future engines.

EAP (Experimental Aircraft Program) is a technology demonstration, essentially developed by BAe as a private enterprise. The first flight took place on August 8, 1986, and it was finally retired on May 1, 1991. The aircraft made 259 test flights with a total flight time of more than 195 hours.

Providing valuable data for the design of the upcoming Typhoon, the technology demonstrator addressed the effectiveness of several key technology components, including the use of carbon fiber and aluminum-lithium alloy structures in the wing and fuselage structures. Five years of development testing followed, but project data quickly accumulated to make the upcoming Typhoon possible. EAP helped develop a "fly-by-wire" system that could be used in conjunction with the inherently unstable aerodynamic airframe. The type is powered by two Turbo Union RBs.

The 199-104 series afterburning turbofans (same as the Panavia Tornado ADV variant) provide 16,000 pounds of thrust each and also feature Tornado fins for cost savings. Top speed is approximately Mach 2.27 (1,500 mph).

The EAP fuselage used a "closed" delta wing instead of the true "straight" delta wing system later found on the Typhoon, and also had a straight lip air intake under the fuselage (this was on the last Typhoon appears to be curved). Although two were to be built, only one example was produced.

While the UK government offered to fund the EAP scheme to some extent, the other participating governments lacked the funds needed to contribute, so the second prototype was never implemented.

In 1987, the EFA European developers requested the release of the final specification, which included more details of the fighter being sought. The new aircraft will be powered by a pair of afterburner turbofan engines, boost a small radar cross section, provide unparalleled agility, operate from short airfields, provide over-the-horizon tracking and engagement, and support high-altitude supersonic performance.

Airframes need to focus on primary air-to-air thinking, with air-to-ground functions as secondary functions. Agreed general specifications include a kerb weight of 21,495 pounds and 20,233 pounds of thrust (with afterburners) per engine.

A multi-billion-dollar contract to build and test the aircraft was signed on November 23, 1988, eventually including a total of eight prototypes - three in the UK, two in Germany, two in Italy and one in Spain. Financing in the form of production will be based entirely on the original share allocation, 33% BAe Systems, 33% MDD (EADS Germany), 21% Alenia and 13% CASA (EADS CASA). Simply put, the more aircraft a country orders, the greater the production load on its citizens. The contract also includes the development of the mainframe and weapon systems.

In early 1990, Ferranti Defense Systems completed the selection of the ECR-90 radar system to be installed in the nose cone of each production Typhoon.

German unification and the way out

The reunification of Germany in the early 1990s shook the once divided German nation. In 1992, the entire Eurofighter program was reassessed in light of events that ended the Cold War with the Soviet Union.

The German defense minister is trying to completely eliminate the financial burden of Germany's participation in the Eurofighter project and to find cheaper alternatives for the needs of modern fighter jets. At the time, the Mikoyan MiG-29 "Pivot" and the Sukhoi Su-27 "Flanker" were the only viable options, and they were completely eliminated compared to the highly advanced Typhoon. Furthermore, Germany's commitment to the ongoing project is so deep that removing the country from the project is almost impossible.

Thus, even after reunification and financial constraints, Germany remained an important player in Eurofighter development. Around this time, the program took the name "Eurofighter 2000".

EFA prototype

The name of the EFA archetype is "DA" followed by a number. that. 1 premiered on March 27, 1994, followed by RB. 199 Power DA. 2 became famous on April 6 of the same year. The flight times are 45 minutes and 50 minutes, respectively. There. No. 1 was given the task of testing the Typhoon's high dynamic pressure and loading structure. There.

2 was the first Eurofighter prototype to be built in the UK, and the first to be done by any country, but the second to actually take off. There. The 2 was eventually refitted with an EJ200 engine and airborne again in August 1988 with her new engine. She was also required to complete the first air-to-air refueling test. There.

4 is the ECR's two-seater fuselage and test bed. 90 radar systems. There. 5 Tested airborne avionics and weapon systems. both reached. 4 and DA. 5 Fly to DA. 6 fried. There. The 6 was the second two-seater prototype, but the first such airframe was lost on 21 November 2002 due to two engine failures - both pilots ejected safely. The first flight was on August 31, 1996.

7 Funding to become the final development prototype was truncated in all subsequent projections, so the planned eighth prototype was never intended to be. There. The 7 first flew in 1997, testing navigation, weapons integration, performance and communications. Five "Instrument Production Aircraft" (IPAs) used IPAs after the prototypes.

1 made its maiden flight on April 15, 2002.

The first production contract was signed on 30 January 1998 and included all major processors - Eurofighter, Eurojet and NETMA. In September 1998, the new fighter's name "Typhoon" (instead of "EF2000") was officially adopted at a naming ceremony, which Germany initially rejected.

Deliveries for the production Typhoon are scheduled to begin sometime in 2001. These have been failing due to project delays. The fighter was officially unveiled on August 3, 2003. The Cold Environment Test (CET) was conducted in 2004.

The first test flight of the CAESAR demonstration system took place in May 2007. The near-production form of the typhoon exploded on January 16. 2008. The first pair of typhoons was received by the RAF on 21 October 2008 and they arrived at RAF Corningsby.

Germany makes waves again

The UK initially committed to 250 aircraft, while Germany committed to 250 systems. Italy will buy 165 and Spain 100. Final assembly will take place in the respective operator countries.

In addition to BAe, an assembly plant for Typhoons purchased in the UK has also been established, while other Typhoons are "born" on production lines in Munich, Turin and Madrid.

The collective workload of typhoon production has been directly focused on the procurement figures committed by each participating country. The more Typhoon planes a country orders, the bigger share of production it should get. At least initially, this is a formal agreement for all partners.

However, spending is being cut everywhere as each country begins to reassess its need for fighter jets. UK orders fell from 250 to 232, while Germany was scheduled to receive only 140 of the 250. Italy has reduced its committed systems from 165 to 121, while Spain has reduced it from 100 to 87. While this was all good on the outside, Germany - even with 110 fewer planes from its initial commitment - refused to take on the reduced production load.

Only after some political wrangling on the British side did Germany accept the purchase of 40 more Typhoons (these were the multi-role variants) in order to reach an acceptable compromise.

After adjusting for production orders, the workload share is now 43% (EADS MAS - Germany and Spain), 37.5% (BAe - UK) and 19.5% (Alenia - Italy). EADS Germany contracts with Germany to produce the main components of the fuselage, while EADS CASA is responsible for the production of the right and slats. BAe Systems will produce the canard nose, forward fuselage, vertical tail, fuselage ridges, aft fuselage, canopy and interior flaperons for the wings. Alenia Aeronautica has been contracted to produce the outboard flaps, aft fuselage components and left wing. Procurement of complete systems is carried out in the context of so-called "batches", which are basically tiered contractual agreements between the parties involved.

To date, the three batches related to typhoon procurement, referred to as Batch 1, Batch 2 and Batch 3A for short. When completed, these contracts will result in the production and delivery of a total of approximately 559 Typhoo aircraft.