A milestone anniversary for the Austrian Air Force: The Eurofighter fleet of the Austrian Armed Forces recently reached the magic mark of 20,000 flying hours. This was celebrated as part of a military ceremony at Hinterstoisser Air Base in Zeltweg.
The ceremony was attended by numerous military and civilian guests of honor, above all Minister of Defense Klaudia TannerLieutenant General Martin Dorfer (Commander of the Austrian Armed Forces & Commander of the Land Forces and Special Forces), Air Chief Major General Gerfried Promberger (Commander of the Austrian Air Force, -> Interview with Militär Aktuell) and the new Eurofighter chief Jorge Tamarit Degenhardt.
“As state-of-the-art combat aircraft, the Eurofighters are indispensable as an active component in airspace surveillance in conjunction with the military surveillance system of the Gold Canopy. They impress with their strong technical performance and the pilots with their physical resilience. This important event is not only a milestone in the history of the Austrian Air Force, but also impressive proof of the outstanding professionalism of our pilots and the excellent work of the technical personnel behind this state-of-the-art combat aircraft,” said Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner in her speech.
In his speech, Eurofighter CEO Jorge Tamarit Degenhardt expressed his thanks for the invitation to the ceremony and then emphasized the enormous importance of the Eurofighter weapon system for Austria’s security: “20,000 flight hours is an enormous number, which means that the Eurofighters of the Austrian Armed Forces were in the air for more than 800 days without interruption.”
Degenhardt continued: “On behalf of Eurofighter, I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to all those who have contributed to achieving this special milestone while maintaining the highest standards of professionalism and safety. The Eurofighter is Europe’s premier swing-role combat aircraft and will continue to serve the Austrian Air Force for decades to come. We look forward to achieving many thousands more flying hours with this outstanding aircraft.”
Air Chief Major General Gerfried Promberger then congratulated Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner on her second term in office and thanked her for the consistent implementation of the “2032+ Recovery Plan”. He then went into detail about the 18-year history of the Eurofighter in the Austrian Air Force. “On July 12, 2007, the first Eurofighter landed here at Hinterstoisser Air Base, and now we already have to think about the end of its service life and its successor,” said Promberger.
The first Austrian Eurofighter – “Austrian Single 001 AS001” – completed its maiden flight on March 21, 2007, taking off and landing at the EADS site in Manching. On June 2, 2008, the red-white-red Eurofighters carried out their first priority “Alpha” mission over Austria; a priority “Alpha” mission is the interception of an unknown flying object. In July, following the return of the F-5 Tigers leased from Switzerland, the Eurofighters took over responsibility for securing Austrian airspace. To date, the Eurofighters have successfully carried out around 700 priority “Alpha” missions in Austrian airspace.
“Experience has shown that it takes seven to eight years to introduce a new fighter aircraft,” said Promberger, explaining the need for a rapid succession plan. “We therefore need to start this year with important steps such as the intention of the project and take important steps towards subsequent procurement.”
According to Promberger, “new Eurofighters (manufacturer Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH), but also Swedish Gripen (manufacturer Saab), French Rafale (manufacturer Dassault) and possibly also American F-35 (manufacturer Lockheed Martin).”
In conclusion, Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner was delighted with “a wonderful day”. Alluding to the Austrian national anthem, she described the Eurofighter story in Austria as “hotly contested, wildly controversial”. She then spoke about the upcoming further development of the red-white-red air force, which is now to be developed from “airspace surveillance” towards “air defense”. “This step is absolutely necessary in view of the current security situation and we will therefore also take this step”.
Here for more Eurofighter news, here for more news about Airbus Defense and Space and here for more Bundesheer news.
