Electronic Combat Typhoons for Germany
On 29 November 2023, Airbus Defence and Space announced that the German Budget Committee approved the acquisition of fifteen Typhoon Electronic Combat fighters for the Luftwaffe (GAF, German Air Force).
The new Typhoons will be equipped with a transmitter location and self-protection system from Saab, as well as Advanced Antiradiation Guided Missile (AARGM) missiles from Northrop Grumman. The Electronic Combat variant will be NATO-certified by 2030 and will then replace the Tornado ECR in the SEAD Suppression of Enemy Air Defence role.
In December 2020, in answer to Boeing’s offer to the GAF of the F/A-18F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler, Airbus Defence and Space offered the Eurofighter EF2000 Typhoon Tranche 5 as a replacement for the Tornado IDS and Tornado ECR.
In October 2022, Scramble Magazine first wrote on a solution offered to the GAF to equip the Eurofighter with a readily-available and mature solution to the GAF's requirement of airborne electronic warfare capabilities (AEWC).
With the parliamentary approval by the Budget Committee, the Eurofighter is now officially set as the successor to the Tornado ECR (Electronic Combat/Reconnaissance). Airbus is now looking forward to the official order to integrate the selected technical solutions into the Eurofighter. The corresponding contract between Eurofighter GmbH, as prime contractor, and NETMA (NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency) is expected to be signed before the end of the year.
Image by Airbus Defence and Space