European aircraft manufacturer Airbus has delivered the first upgraded Tranche 1 Eurofighter to the Spanish Air Force.
According to a news release put out by Airbus, the upgrade was carried out at Airbus facilities in Getafe and involved the introduction of hardware modifications which support the Operational Flight Program 02 (OFP-02) developed by the Armament and Experimental Logistics Centre (CLAEX).
The upgrade developed by Airbus includes modifications that integrate Tranche 2 and Tranche 3 equipment on the aircraft, not least a Computer Symbol Generator, Digital Video and Voice Recorder, Laser Designator POD and Maintenance Data Panel.
This first single-seat Eurofighter (serial number SS003), to be followed by a second two-seat aircraft currently undergoing the upgrade, will be used initially by CLAEX as a test aircraft for the qualification of these new capabilities that will be implemented on the Air Force’s fleet of 15 Tranche 1 Eurofighters.
According to Airbus, the Eurofighter Typhoon is the world’s most modern swing-role fighter. Once conceived as a multi-national programme to modernize the European Air Forces, the Eurofighter Typhoon has in the meantime been sold to 5 additional customers (Austria, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Sultanate of Oman, Kuwait and Qatar) and thus doubled the number of its original user nations.
It is powered by two EJ200 engines that give the Eurofighter Typhoon its impressive thrust-to-weight ratio and maneuverability.
The core of this state of the art weapon system is its Identification capability and sensor fusion, based on the CAPTOR-E AESA radar and the PIRATE FLIR sensor while being protected by the PRAETORIAN Electronic Defensive Aid Sub System (DASS). No other fighter aircraft has integrated a comparably high number of European and US weapons and is thus combat ready whatever the mission.