German Parliament Approves 5.4 billion Euro Deal for 38 Eurofighter jets

The German parliament today approved a 5.4 billion euro contract to buy 38 Eurofighter jets from Airbus.

The Parliament’s budget committee allocated the funds to form the initial block of aircraft out of the 93 Eurofighter jets  it is committed  to purchase from Airbus Defence, German media reports said.

“Today’s commitment from @Team_Luftwaffe to purchase up to 38 @Eurofighter aircraft reinforces Typhoon’s role at the heart of European defence for decades to come. Our team in the UK stand ready to work alongside our partners across Europe to deliver on our commitments,” a Tweet from BAE Systems’ Air said commenting on the approval.

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The German selection of the Eurofighter over the Lockheed Martin F-35 will mean that the German Air Force will not be flying the American Jet in future which the US has been keen to sell to Berlin.

“Today’s announcement by the German Parliament of its intention to purchase 38 Typhoon aircraft is a strong endorsement of the leading capabilities of the aircraft,” said Andrea Thompson, Managing Director Europe, BAE Systems Air.

Meanwhile, the German Bundeswehr announced that the Bundestag (Parliament) annual budget process decided today to replace the Eurofighter Tranche _1 aircraft with the latest generation Tranche-4. “With the approval, the so-called Quadriga contract will be signed in November,” it said.

The arrival of a total of 38 new aircraft is expected to take place between 2025 and 2030. Seven of the Eurofighters for the Air Force will be training doubles.

The decision also includes 4 so-called “instrumented” Eurofighters. With these aircraft, specially cabled and equipped for test purposes, the weapon system can be further developed in cooperation with the armaments industry in order to advance the future of the Eurofighter operationally but also technologically in Germany.

In the "Eurofighter- National Test & Evaluation Center" - a network of air force, procurement organization and industry - will be set up for the further development of the entire system, in which the air force will also have direct access for the first time on the instrumented Eurofighters.

One of the main reasons for Germany to choose the Eurofighter Typhoon over the F-35 was the desire to retain intellectual property of the aircraft, electronic systems and weapons within the country. The Eurofighter- National Test & Evaluation Center will enable it to do just that.