A Eurofighter Typhoon and assorted weaponry on display at the Paris Air Show (Eurofighter Typhoon on Twitter)
PARIS AIR SHOW — The head of the Eurofighter Typhoon consortium has said the group is “getting prepared” to maximize new sales and additional batch orders of the swing role aircraft, stating market opportunities could cover 150 to 200 aircraft over the next two years.
Gaincarlo Mezzanatto, CEO of Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH, the management company of the four-nation fighter jet, told media here at the Paris Air Show that plans are already in motion to “fully support” partner companies and suppliers to meet pressing export demands and focus on how to best sustain a “new production rate.”
He also stressed that the delivery of a 10-year technology maturation program remains a top priority, with Typhoon’s Long Term Evolution (LTE) roadmap, first rolled out in 2019, set to “soon” enter a Phase 4 Enhancements (P4E) program.
Regarding sales, an additional order from Spain under the country’s Halcon 2 program could arrive for Eurofighter shortly, Mezzanatto said. He added that the Phase 3 Enhancement (P3E) package offered to Madrid for the acquisition would be identical to a batch of 20 Eurofighter Tranche 4 jets, sold under Halcon 1 and set to replace Spanish Air Force F-18s based in the Canary Islands. Halcon 1 deliveries are expected to start in 2026.
Halcon is Spain’s national, two phase, acquisition program to replace all F/A-18C/D Hornets, split between the already contracted Halcon 1 and the still to be awarded Halcon 2 follow on order.
Gen. Javier Salto Martínez-Avial, chief of the Spanish Air & Space Force, said in May that he wanted to see the Spanish MoD sign a Halcon 2 contract for 25 Eurofighter aircraft, pressing for such a move to happen urgently because deliveries could take another 10 years.
“On Halcon 2, the only thing that may happen is that there could be a delay [to Spain making a contract award decision] because of elections,” said Mezzanatto. “But on the other end, there are signs that they could even decide before the elections. I don’t think that any new government will change the decision [to award a contract].”
Spain will hold a general election on July 23, as called for by socialist prime minister Pedro Sánchez. It’s seen as a particularly risky election for the sitting government after significant gains for center-right party Partido Popular in recent municipal and regional polls.
Mezzanatto also outlined that a Eurofighter order could be agreed with Poland after he said he held a meeting with a Polish delegation on Tuesday. “We know their requirements and are ready to support them,” he said, “I think Eurofighter Poland is really a good opportunity.”
Elsewhere, some industry progress has been made on Typhoon support arrangements after Germany’s softening of approach on arms exports to Saudi Arabia, according to Mezzanatto, which have long held up a second batch order for 48 aircraft.
Attempts to close the deal have been in limbo since the UK suspended arms sales to Saudi Arabia in 2019, after the Court of Appeal in London ruled them unlawful, judging that the government had not properly assessed the risk of civilian harm linked to Saudi-led coalition airstrikes in Yemen. Germany similarly enforced an arms embargo on Riyadh in response to the murder of US-Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and Yemen war involvement.
“We had very good news last year [from Germany] as export licenses for all [Eurofighter] spare parts and repairs activity [were] extended for three years, for some time we have had to work year to year,” he added. “The leading nation, in this case, the UK for Saudi Arabia, for instance, is really active with the German government to overcome these [difficulties].”
The UK MoD told Breaking Defense in April that if additional Eurofighter aircraft or an upgrade to Saudi Arabia’s current fleet of 72 aircraft matched Riyadh “capability needs” it would “fully support” either decision.
Mezzanatto also said that Germany has still to decide on how to move forward with a plan to acquire additional Eurofighter jets to replace some of its own Tornado jets, as Berlin looks to phase the type out by 2030.
