On October 13, the German aviation industry called on the government in Berlin to make a quick decision on a new Eurofighter order. According to the industry association BDLI, a further fifth tranche is only needed for Germany in order to prevent the end of the construction of fighter aircraft in the country and thus the loss of jobs, tax revenue and cutting-edge technology.
A successful #turnaround needs a strong #Eurofighter program in 🇩🇪. That was my message at the @BDLI press conference. Now we have to answer the question: Do we want to 🇩🇪 maintain military aircraft construction in the long term? If the answer is ‘yes’, there is 🇩🇪action is needed. pic.twitter.com/ucTXOj80bG
– Michael Schoellhorn (@SchoellhornMike) October 13, 2023
The warning was underpinned by a study previously commissioned by the association from management consultants PwC, according to which the Eurofighter represents 25,000 jobs in Germany and a further 75,000 in Europe, with around 120 suppliers in Germany involved. In contrast, however, the number of aircraft on the books is lower than ever before at 58 and, according to current planning, production in Germany will end in 2030 with the delivery of the last aircraft for the 38 Quadriga aircraft (as a replacement for Tranche-1) for the German Armed Forces and 20 Halcon aircraft for the Spanish Air Force (replacement for early EF-18AM/BM Hornet). However: Spain signed the Halcon-II contract in mid-September for a further 25 new Tranche-4 Eurofighters for a total of 1.4 billion euros until 2027. This means that the number “on the books” is actually 83 aircraft. https://militaeraktuell.at/sanitaetskraefte-uebten-am-tuepl-hochfilzen/ Gap of 10 years
Because the future European air combat system FCAS – always plagued by French long-term doubts about Germany future European air combat system FCAS is not expected to be operational until 2040, there is a gap of ten years without orders for domestic industry representatives, according to the German industry. Around 5,800 employees work at the Eurofighter plant in Manching near Ingolstadt. The German Armed Forces describe the 138 Eurofighters as the backbone of the German fighter aircraft fleet and as a core element in ensuring the future contribution of the air force to the required capability profile of the armed forces and the associated alliance obligations.
Airbus Defense & Space-CEO Michael Schöllhorn is also the BDLI President. According to him, the order for new Eurofighters must quickly build the industrial bridge to the future. Specifically, he would like to see a clear commitment from the German government for new orders; the Group is currently discussing the award of a further tranche with the federal government. Schöllhorn said at a specially convened press conference, the content of which was reported by various German media outlets: “If Germany wants to continue building military aircraft in the future, the contract must be signed. In concrete terms, this means that we need the contract for the Long Term Evolution (LTE) further development of the Eurofighter before the end of this legislative period – i.e. next year. This is because production at the suppliers will come to an end in 2027, which is why the pressure to act is so great. Otherwise, the technological foundations for FCAS will not be in place.”
“If Germany wants to continue building military aircraft in the future, the contract must be signed.”
Airbus Defence & Space-Chef Michael Schöllhorn
Further “construction sites”
However, this is still a long way off. Before that, the German Eurofighters of Tranches 2 and 3 will receive a new AESA radar in the next few years and will probably be “down” for several months per aircraft due to this upgrade. As a result – according to reports – another 2,000 or even 3,000 hours will have to be “squeezed out” of Tranche 1 until it is replaced by Quadriga in order to “maintain current operational capabilities without interruption”. To this end, the oldest airframe or one of the oldest airframes is to be completely dismantled this year and analyzed in detail to determine its possible or expected remaining service life. The German type certificate and the NATO authority NETMA (NATO Eurofighter/Tornado Management Agency) once set a benchmark of 25 years in this respect – not calculated from the date of delivery, but from the date of production of the components.
Today, it is admitted that this should have been linked to operating hours rather than years – and this also has relevance for the Austrian Tranche 1 jets. Of the 15 (instead of the originally planned 18) red-white-red aircraft, six – thanks to a “blessed” settlement in 2007 – had already clocked up several hundred flying hours at the time and came from the German Air Force (GS abbreviation for German Single on the tail unit root). Although the 2003 contract stipulates a service life of 30 years from first delivery in July 2007, the domestic certification is supposed to be based on the aforementioned German type certificate. Consequently, Vienna is or has already been repeatedly invited to “participate” in the Tranche 1 service life extension measures as a G2G measure, because the German Air Force would have to make these investments anyway. However, the relevant level in the BMLV tends to see the manufacturer Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH and EADS (now Airbus Defence & Space) behind it, in terms of a 30-year obligation – a decision on this is pending. The time window for this and in connection with the planned capability expansion will close sometime in 2024. In any case, the Council of Ministers of the next government will not escape a decision on the successor to the Austrian Tranche 1 aircraft, given the lead and delivery times of many years.
In addition to the Tranche 1 extension and its replacement by Quadriga by 2030 and the – to the annoyance of FCAS partner Dassault – procurement of the 35 F-35Aas well as the 15 Eurofighters for electronic warfare (ECR or EK, apparently with Saab sensors) and combat air defense is still open, a complete replacement for the complete replacement for the 85 PA-2000 Tornado swing-wing aircraft (as of 2022) still in service since 1981.
This fleet, which once numbered 357 aircraft, is divided into fighter-bomber IDS (Interdiction Strike) and the special role ECR (Electronic Combat and Reconnaissance), which is registered with NATO. In addition, all Tornados with the Airborne Reconnaissance II container are also capable of optical and infrared reconnaissance (RECCE) and can refuel each other with a hose reel container (buddy buddy). In addition, all 85 ECRs and IDSs still in service received the Avionics System Software for Tornado in Ada 3 modernization level (ASSTA 3 or 3.1) by 2019. In addition to new screens for the weapon system officer in the rear cockpit and improvements to the communication and data link systems, they have been equipped for the use of modern precision guided weapons and the Reccelite container in the aforementioned reconnaissance role. Whether and which or how many platforms and with which subsystems will cover these capabilities in the future is currently still the subject of speculation. Those responsible have not yet provided any information on this – at least publicly.
Here for more Eurofighter news and here to an interesting commentary on the subject.
