This great fighter aircraft will serve the uk royal air force and NATO well and will be a boost for NATO and UK military power. The Eurofighter Typhoon is a twin-engine, canard-delta wing, multirole fighter.[8][9] The Typhoon was designed and is manufactured by a consortium of three companies; EADS, Alenia Aermacchi and BAE Systems, who conduct the majority of affairs dealing with the project through a joint holding company, Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH, which was formed in 1986. The project is managed by the NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency, which also acts as the prime customer.[10] Development of the aircraft effectively began in 1983 with the Future European Fighter Aircraft programme, a multinational collaborative effort between Germany, France, UK, Italy and Spain. Due to disagreements over design authority and operational requirements, France left the consortium to independently develop the Dassault Rafale instead. A technology demonstration aircraft, the British Aerospace EAP, first took flight on 6 August 1986; the first prototype of the finalised Eurofighter made its first flight on 27 March 1994. The name of the aircraft, Typhoon, was formally adopted in September 1998; the first production contracts were signed that same year. Political issues in the partner nations significantly protracted the Typhoon's development; the sudden end of the Cold War reduced European demand for fighter aircraft, and there was debate over the cost and work share of the Eurofighter. The Typhoon was introduced into operational service in 2003. Currently, the type has entered service with the Austrian Air Force, the Italian Air Force, the German Air Force, the Royal Air Force, the Spanish Air Force, and the Royal Saudi Air Force. The Royal Air Force of Oman has also been confirmed as an export customer, bringing the procurement total to 571 aircraft as of 2013. The Eurofighter Typhoon is a highly agile aircraft, designed to be an effective dogfighter when in combat with other aircraft; later production aircraft have been increasingly more well-equipped to undertake air-to-surface strike missions and to be compatible with an increasing number of different armaments and equipment. The Typhoon saw its combat debut during the 2011 military intervention in Libya with the Royal Air Force and the Italian Air Force, performing reconnaissance and ground strike missions. The type has also taken primary responsibility for air defence duties for the majority of customer nations The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO; /ˈneɪtoʊ/ nay-toh; French: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique Nord (OTAN)), also called the (North) Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949. The organization constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. NATO's headquarters are in Brussels, Belgium, one of the 28 member states across North America and Europe, the newest of which, Albania and Croatia, joined in April 2009. An additional 22 countries participate in NATO's "Partnership for Peace", with 15 other countries involved in institutionalized dialogue programs. The combined military spending of all NATO members constitutes over 70% of the world's defence spending.[4] Eurofighter DA-2 Typhoon (serial number ZH588) is on display at the Royal Air Force Museum London. This aircraft is one of seven EF 2000 development aircraft built by the Eurofighter Partner Companies, and was used for flight testing. The aircraft was delivered by road on 22 January 2008. Engineers from RAF Coningsby and RAF St. Athan assembled the aircraft for display. It is hanging in the Museum's Milestones of Flight Exhibition Hall.[256] The first development aircraft Eurofighter DA-1 can be seen at the Deutsches Museum Flugwerft Schleissheim at Oberschleißheim Airport in the north of Munich. Its first flight took place in 1994 and it was handed over to the museum in 2008.[257] In 2009 Eurofighter DA-4, serial number ZH590, went on display at Imperial War Museum Duxford, having been given to the museum by the Ministry of Defence in 2008. It is exhibited as part of the museum's 'AirSpace' gallery, as an example of the development of aircraft technology.[258] One of the engines from this aircraft, which have both now been removed, will be used in the Bloodhound SSC land-speed record vehicle.[citation needed] On 4 August 2003, Germany accepted the first series production Eurofighter (GT003).[140] Also that year, Spain took delivery of its first series production aircraft.[141] On 16 December 2005, the Typhoon reached initial operational capability (IOC) with the Italian Air Force. Its Typhoons were put into service as air defence fighters at Grosseto Air Base, and immediately assigned to Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) at the same base.[142]

• published: 20 Oct 2014
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