BAE celebrates raft of new Eurofighter orders

BAE Systems is celebrating two new deals to buy Eurofighter Typhoon jets which secure thousands of jobs at the firm’s Lancashire military aircraft factories.

On Friday Spain announced it will acquire an additional 25 planes with Italy confirming a purchase of 24 on Monday.

A third of every aircraft is manufactured at BAE Systems’ production facility in Samlesbury where components including the jet’s front fuselage, spine tank and tail section.

Engineering and flight testing of Typhoon takes place in Warton.

The contracts secure highly-skilled jobs in the North-West with 6,000 people directly employed on the Typhoon programme at BAE Systems.

The programme supports 9,280 jobs in the North West including many in the supply chain.

Both contracts were announced by Eurofighter GmbH, the body which represents the three main companies behind the consortium, Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo.

Richard Hamilton, managing director – Europe and International for BAE Systems’ air sector, said: “The announcement by Italy following Spain’s recent decision to purchase additional Typhoons reinforces the aircraft’s position as the backbone of European air defence.

“Every day we see the important role Typhoon plays as part of NATO in delivering air security in the skies over Europe and this investment only strengthens the international partnership which Typhoon underpins.

“We are proud of our long term role on the programme, which continues to make significant contribution to the UK economy, supporting more than 20,000 jobs across the nation and generating billions of pounds across the UK and Europe.

“Together with our Eurofighter partners, our people will work together to ensure Typhoon continues its enviable reputation for performance, reliability, availability and safety.”

The leaders of Eurofighter signed the contract for up to 24 Italian Air Force Eurofighters in Rome.

The 24 new Italian Eurofighter Typhoon jets will replace Italian Tranche 1 versions currently in service.

Giancarlo Mezzanatto, chief executive of Eurofighter, said: “Italy’s decision to purchase an additional 24 jets is, of course, fantastic news for our programme, further demonstrating the strength and importance that Eurofighter Typhoon brings to Europe.

“The Spanish order for 25 additional Eurofighter jets is another proud chapter in the programme’s ‘renaissance’ period, which is set to continue into the mid 2030’s.

“During this past seven days we have seen two of the four Eurofighter Core Nations sign new contract orders, with a clear desire to modernise their air forces and making Eurofighter their number one choice of aircraft.”

As with the new Halcon II Spanish order , the new Italian Eurofighters will be equipped with advanced avionics, enhanced weapon systems capable of operating Brimstone III and Meteor, new sensors and improved connectivity.

The Spanish and Italian announcements, alongside a forthcoming German order and anticipated export opportunities, mean Eurofighter’s additional order book is set to grow to between 100 and 200 aircraft in the next decade.

The Halcon agreement will see 25 new Eurofighter jets (21 single-seat and four twin-seat) delivered to the Spanish Air Force between 2030 and 2035 bringing the total number of Typhoons in the Spanish Air Force to 115.

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