France to Supply Ukraine with 40 Scalp Missiles, Alongside Hundreds of Bombs, Caesar Cannons, and Howitzers

French President Emmanuel Macron announced France's commitment to supply Ukraine with additional military equipment, including about 40 Scalp-EG (Storm Shadow) cruise missiles and hundreds of bombs in the coming weeks. Macron also mentioned that the French defense industry is operating within a "war economy" to boost production and supplies, particularly 155mm Caesar howitzers.

In the context of the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia, Macron emphasized the gravity of the situation, calling the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine the biggest risk to the security of Europe. He revealed that France is finalizing a bilateral security agreement with Ukraine, similar to the one recently concluded by the U.K. The agreement is aimed at providing support to Ukraine in terms of training, holding the front, and defending its skies.

Macron plans to visit Ukraine in February, coinciding with the start of deliveries of munitions.

Macron highlighted the tension between China and the U.S. and the need for Europe to become more sovereign and stable independently of the United States. Macron emphasized the importance of preventing Russia from winning in Ukraine, stating that allowing such an outcome would endanger the security of Europe and Russia's neighboring countries.

The military aid provided by France to Ukraine, including Caesar cannons and Scalp missiles, will enhance Ukraine's long-range fire capabilities.

Royal Air Force Tornados join Syria strikes, launching Storm Shadow missiles

Four Royal Air Force Tornados GR4s joined the strikes against Syria, launching Storm Shadow missiles at a base 15 miles west of Homs.
The Tornado is UK's primary ground attack jet and has been used to carry out numerous air strikes in Syria and Iraq in recent years.
Set to be retired from service next year after almost four decades on operations, the Tornado, with a maximum speed of Mach 1.3, has also seen action in Libya and Afghanistan.
The main Tornado squadrons are based at RAF Marham in Norfolk, which will become the new home of the cutting-edge of the F-35 Lightning stealth fighter jets.
There are currently six of the jets based at RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, a location some 315 miles (510km) from Syria.
itv.com

Kuwait To Sign Deal for 28 Eurofighters

Kuwait is expected to sign a deal to buy 28 Eurofighter aircraft on Jan. 31, acording to an Italian Ministry of Defense source.
Italy, which is one of the four industrial partners on the Eurofighter program alongside the UK, Spain and Germany, has taken the lead in marketing the aircraft to Kuwait.
Two senior Kuwaiti Military officials confirmed on Wednesday that the Minister of Defense Khaled al-Jarrah al-Sabah will sign the Eurofighter contract on Sunday.
The decision came after repeated US delays regarding the acquisition of a new fleet of Boeing F-18 Super Hornets
"We were trying to acquire the F-18 Super Hornets and replace the existing fleet of F-18s with Super Hornets and Eurofighter Typhoons," he said. "However, we cannot wait for the American approval and need to update our Air Force now."
A second official stated that a meeting was held with Italian Air Force officials in Turin in mid-November.
"We have discussed the Eurofighter deal, which was expected to be finalized in Kuwait in December but was delayed due to problems on the pilot training," he said.
"Our Air Force wanted to send the pilots for training in the United Kingdom, not Italy, due to the language barriers; however the deal was finalized after there was an agreement on sending them to train in Italy," he added.
"The training program is expected not to take less than 18 months," he said.
Kuwait has agreed to buy 22 single-seat and six twin-seat Typhoons in a government-to-government agreement.
Industry sources have said the deal, which could be worth up to €8 billion (US $8.7 billion), could see the Kuwaitis become the first export customer for the active electronically scanned array radar being developed for the jet.
The aircraft are expected to be new-build, third tranche, swing-role versions of the fighter, with deliveries starting in 2019 and possibly covering munitions such as the Storm Shadow and Meteor.
defensenews

First Storm Shadow Missile Succesfully Released From Typhoon

A Typhoon Instrumented Production Aircraft (IPA) has successfully completed a release of the MBDA Storm Shadow, conventionally armed, stealthy, long-range stand-off precision missile, Eurofighter GmbH has announced
This continues the series of trials that Eurofighter Partner Company, Alenia Aermacchi, is leading to demonstrate the full integration of the Storm Shadow missile with Typhoon's weapon system.
baesystems

Airbus trials aerodynamic enhancements for Eurofighter Typhoon

Airbus has completed flight-testing of a package of aerodynamic upgrades to the Eurofighter Typhoon that are geared at enhancing the combat aircraft's agility and weapons-carrying ability.
The flight trials of the Aerodynamic Modification Kit (AMK) were part of the wider Eurofighter Enhanced Manoeuvrability (EFEM) programme.
The AMK comprises additional fuselage strakes and leading-edge root extensions that are designed to increase the maximum lift created by the wing by 25%.
Flight trials had yielded some better-than-expected results, with the angle-of-attack capability being 45% greater than that of the unmodified aircraft, and roll-rates up to 100% higher. The flight trials followed around five years of studies, with Eurofighter test pilots and operational pilots from Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom conducting 36 sorties from Manching, Germany, on the Instrumented Production Aircraft (IPA) 7.
In terms of expanding the Typhoon's air-to-air and air-to-surface capabilities, Eurofighter has recently undertaken a series of separate weapon trials that include the MBDA Meteor beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-to-air missile (BVRAAM), the MBDA Storm Shadow/Taurus cruise missiles, the MBDA Brimstone low-collateral air-to-surface missile, and the Raytheon Paveway IV precision-guided bomb. Airbus has also revealed that it is looking to integrate a variety of anti-shipping missiles onto the aircraft to increases its maritime role. The goal is to have the full multirole Phase 3 Enhancements (P3E) package in place by 2018, to coincide with the retirement from UK service of the Panavia Tornado GR.4 strike aircraft.
The Euroradar Captor electronically scanned (E-Scan)/Captor active electronically scanned array (CAESAR) radar is currently in its Extended Assessment Phase (EAP), with an integration contract signed by Eurofighter and partner nations on 19 November 2014. The Captor-E/CAESAR is being provisioned for the Tranche 3 aircraft, and will be retrofittable to Tranche 2 platforms also. Once fielded, the new AESA radar should offer some electronic attack capability and simultaneous multimode operation, plus significantly expanded air-to-air capability (it will also have additional functions at the customer's request).
janes

Succes of First Storm Shadow Missile Release From an Eurofighter Typhoon

Alenia Aermacchi and Eurofighter partners have successfully conducted the first release of a Storm Shadow missile from a Eurofighter Typhoon.
The trials took place in November and saw the missile being released from the aircraft and tracked by radar up to impact.
Another Eurofighter partner, BAE Systems, has completed the first trial installation of a Storm Shadow missile onto a RAF Typhoon with support from weapons provider MBDA.
Storm Shadow, already in service with the Italian Air Force and Royal Air Force Tornados, is a conventionally armed, stealthy, long-range stand-off precision weapon designed to neutralise high value targets.
The new weapons system will add the capability to strike in day or night in all-weather conditions, well-defended infrastructure targets such as port facilities, control centres, bunkers, missile sites, airfields and bridges that would otherwise require several aircraft and missions. This is a new addition to the Eurofighter Typhoon’s potent simultaneous multi-/swing-role capabilities.
Powered by a turbo-jet engine, with a range in excess of 250 km, the Storm Shadow missile weighs approximately 1.300kg and is just over 5 metres long. It will be available to operators when the Eurofighter Typhoon Phase 2 Enhancements become operational.
The first tests on Storm Shadow integration for the Eurofighter began in December 2013 with development aircraft IPA2 operated by Alenia Aermacchi.
The recent inert drop-tests and store release trials will now be followed by work on the instrumented missiles for the Environmental Data Gathering tests known as Phase 3. eurofighter

Success for Italian Eurofighter Storm Shadow Trials

Italy’s Alenia Aermacchi has confirmed that the first phase of tests for the integration of the Storm Shadow long-range missile onto the Eurofighter Typhoon has been completed.
Storm Shadow is a long range, all-weather, high precision, stand-off weapon already in service on Royal Air Force Tornados. It has been proven in operations to great effect in Iraq and Libya neutralising hardened command bunkers and other high value targets. The stealthy weapon design allows it to penetrate layered air defences whilst the long range of Storm Shadow allows it to be launched outside those defences increasing the launch aircraft survivability.
In the deep attack role Eurofighter Typhoon will carry two Storm Shadow missiles whilst maintaining the ability to carry 8 air-air missiles. This will enable Eurofighter Typhoon to fight its way in and out of the combat area.
defense-aerospace

New RAF Typhoons to carry Storm Shadow missiles

New Typhoon fighters to be flown by Royal Air Force will carry Storm Shadow missiles following an agreement between a NATO agency and Eurofighter.
The Storm Shadow, made by MBDA, is a long-range air-to-surface weapon for use against targets such as bridges, airfields, harbors.
The missiles were previously been deployed on Eurofighter's Tornado GR4 aircraft during operations over Iraq and Libya.
The agreement, worth about $205 million, signed on Tuesday is between Eurofighter GmbH, manufacturer of the Typhoon and Tornado, and the NATO Eurofighter Tornado Management Agency, on behalf of the partner nations.
The missiles, which first became operational in 2002, will be integrated onto Typhoon Tranche 2 and Tranche 3 planes. The aircraft will enter service with the Royal Air Force in 2018.
upi.com

Storm Shadow Missile To Be Integrated in Eurofighter Typhoon

A contract to integrate the Storm Shadow stand-off missile on to the Typhoon combat was signed Thursday betwein Britain's MoD and the NATO Eurofighter Tornado Management Agency and Eurofighter.
The British, Italian and Saudi Arabian air forces all currently fly MBDA's long range cruise missile on Tornado strike jets and are expected to add the capability to their Typhoon fleets.
Early integration work with Storm Shadow has been underway for a while and the weapon has already completed carriage trials last year in Italy and Britain.
The weapon should be ready for release to the Royal Air Force in 2016.
defensenews

U.K. Gears Up For Typhoon Enhancements

On April 1, 2015, the U.K. Royal Air Force will stand up its fifth front-line squadron of Eurofighter Typhoons.
The reformation of II (Army Cooperation) Sqdn. at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland will not only round off the U.K.’s deployment plans but will also mark the moment that the RAF declares its Typhoon force a truly multirole asset.
It has probably taken longer than the RAF anticipated; the Typhoon has been in service now for 11 years. But the addition of Phase 1 Enhancement (P1E) capability on the Tranche 2 fleet should help pave the way for the Typhoon to take on more of the ground-attack mission currently held by the Panavia Tornado GR4 force, which is due to retire before the end of this decade.
The addition of the P1E delivers a ground-attack capability with the U.K.’s primary precision-guided weapon, the Raytheon Paveway IV, along with a host of other improvements.
But if Typhoon is going to take on the role of the RAF’s big stick before the end of the decade, the GR4’s other weapons—such as the MBDA Storm Shadow cruise missile and the Brimstone, direct-fire air-to-ground missile—also need to be integrated to ensure there are no gaps in the RAF’s strike capability.
aviationweek

Eurofighter launches new Typhoon enhancement package

Eurofighter has rolled out a major capability enhancement package for its Typhoon at the ongoing 2014 ILA Berlin Air Show in Germany.
The package incorporates lessons learned during the operations in Libya, and are designed to significantly enhance the air-surface capabilities and completely revise the human machine interface for multirole operations.
The enhancements are also expected to enable the pilot to seamlessly transition between air-to-air and air-to-ground modes.
Phase 1 Enhancements (P1Eb) package is a significant advancement for the programme, and allows Typhoon to realise both its air-to-air and air-to-ground capability to full effect.
This package also paves the way for the Eurofighter to deploy deep strike stand-off weapons that can target high-value highly protected surface targets. The company is currently conducting the integration and flight test of the Storm Shadow missile.
The package also integrates the Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM), which has higher average speed than conventional missiles, and when combined with Typhoons' kinetics, is claimed to deliver a 'no escape zone' greater than three times that of comparable weaponry.
The package also includes a suite of capability upgrades for the aircraft's defensive aids sub system (DASS), and the latest interoperability updates for its multifunction and distribution systems (MIDS).
airforce-technology

Typhoon starts windtunnel tests with conformal fuel tanks

The Eurofighter Typhoon’s proposed conformal fuel tank (CFT) configuration has entered windtunnel testing in the UK.
BAE is currently assessing the aerodynamic characteristics of carrying two fuselage-mounted conformal fuel tanks on the Typhoon aircraft.
A new configuration item for the Tranche 3 production standard Typhoon, the conformal structures would free up under-wing pylons frequently used to carry external fuel tanks, but recently employed in testing to carry the MBDA Storm Shadow and Taurus Systems KEPD 350 cruise missiles. All Tranche 3 aircraft are being manufactured with the required structural and fuel system modifications to carry the CFTs.
The four-nation Eurofighter consortium exhibited a full-size model of the Typhoon with the conformal tanks fitted at the Dubai air show last November, with the adaptation having been on offer to the United Arab Emirates, which subsequently halted talks linked to a potential Typhoon acquisition.
flightglobal

Eurofighter flies with Storm Shadow missiles

MBDA’s Storm Shadow cruise missile has been flown with a Eurofighter Typhoon for the first time. Two of the roughly 1.3t weapons were carried by the combat aircraft, using hardpoints usually occupied by external fuel tanks.
flightglobal

Eurofighter Aims for AESA Radar Contract by Mid-2014

Eurofighter is targeting the middle of 2014 to secure a deal with the fast jet’s European partner nations to develop an active electronically-scanned array (AESA) radar for the Typhoon.
The deal will involve the development of a production-standard AESA radar by the Selex ES-led Euroradar consortium.
A mid-year contract signing means it would be close to a two-year wait since the NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency (NETMA) , which manages the program on behalf of the British, German, Italian and Spanish governments, issued Euroradar a request for proposals to develop the AESA system.
The drawn-out effort to make a production-standard AESA radar available to the Typhoon partners and export customers has drawn criticism from many quarters .
The slow pace of capability improvement approvals on Typhoon is partly responsible for a determination by industry and partner government to change the construct of Eurofighter and possibly NETMA to make the approval process more agile as the emphasis of the program begins to move away from production of aircraft for the European partners toward meeting export customers’ requirements.
Typhoon has already been sold to Austria, Oman and Saudi Arabia; the aircraft is involved in export competitions in Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia and Kuwait.
Development work on the Selex radar, known as Captor-E, has been continuing, partly funded by industry. Typhoon test aircraft IPA7 is almost ready to start shakeout flights following modifications to make it capable of testing an AESA radar.
The first flight is expected before the end of the year, after which the machine will be fitted out with a development standard radar in the first quarter of next year.
Typhoon’s strike weapons capabilities are on track to allow flight test campaigns with Storm Shadow and Taurus cruise missiles to get underway.
In the case of Storm Shadow, Alenia Aermacchi is expected to flight test the weapon at the Decimomannu air base in Sardinia imminently; a similar campaign on the Taurus is scheduled to get underway in December.
Eurofighter’s capability full integration clearance for Storm Shadow is planned for 2015.
The weapon is already used by the Saudis, British and Italians on Tornado strike aircraft.
Integration work on the MBDA Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air weapon is already going full tilt.
The latest standard of Typhoons, known as Tranche 3, now starting to come off the assembly lines in all four European partner nations, are being fitted for but not with conformal fuel tanks.
The first Tranche 3 aircraft, a Royal Air Force machine, is due to fly by the end of the year.
defensenews