Eurofighter affirms ‘real deal' commitment to export customers

As an export customer, Qatar fields the same latest standard of the Eurofighter combat aircraft as the partner countries. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)

Export customers of the Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft receive all of the same high-end capabilities as the partner operators, a consortium representative confirmed to Janes on 31 March.

Speaking in the wake of comments made by United States President Donald Trump earlier in March when he referred to a ‘dumbed-down' version of the F-47 Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) combat aircraft for non-US customers, Eurofighter affirmed that this was not the case for its product.

“All customers get the real deal,” the representative of the four-nation consortium of Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom said, referring to export jets sold to Austria, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

Indeed, the Eurofighter is an interesting case study in the relative capabilities of partner versus export aircraft, in that the jets delivered to Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar are all operating with an advanced active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar in place of the mechanically scanned array radars now equipping the rest of the fleet.

Further to those jets already exported, Eurofighter is also chasing down realistic short-term prospects in Poland and Türkiye.

For more information on the Eurofighter, please see Eurofighter economic impact study touts hundreds more potential sales .