- Leonardo executives met with Bangladesh Air Force leadership in Dhaka to discuss the possible sale of Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft.
- Bangladesh is considering both the Eurofighter Typhoon and Chinese J-10CE jets as part of its air force modernization program.
Three top executives from Leonardo S.p.A., the Italian defense firm involved in the Eurofighter Typhoon program, arrived in Dhaka on Tuesday to hold high-level discussions with the Bangladesh Air Force on a potential acquisition of the advanced multi-role fighter jet.
According to local media reports, the delegation included Major General Luigi Casali, head of the First Department for Industrial Policy and Cooperation at the Italian National Armaments Directorate, Leonardo Senior Vice President of Marketing and Sales Tommasso Pani, and Vice President of Fighter Sales Constantino Panvini. The team landed at Hazrat Shah Jalal International Airport and was escorted to Bangladesh Air Headquarters for meetings.
Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan hosted the delegation to review options for purchasing the Eurofighter Typhoon, as Bangladesh seeks to upgrade its air force under an accelerated modernization plan. The Typhoon is built by a European consortium of Leonardo, BAE Systems, and Airbus Defence and Space. Leonardo plays a lead role in manufacturing avionics, key fuselage sections, and offers support and assembly services for the Italian Air Force.
As stated by the manufacturer, the Eurofighter Typhoon is a twin-engine, supersonic aircraft capable of Mach 2.35. It is equipped for air superiority, ground attack, and surveillance missions, with advanced active and passive avionics systems supporting networked operations.
The meeting comes as Bangladesh weighs competing offers, including the Chinese J-10CE fighter and the jointly developed JF-17 from Pakistan and China. In October, the Office of the Chief Adviser in Bangladesh disclosed that acquiring 20 J-10CE aircraft by 2027 would cost $1.2 billion for the airframes alone, with total expenses, including training and spares, reaching $2.2 billion. Payments would be spread over a 10-year period through fiscal year 2035–2036.
Air Chief Marshal Khan chairs a 12-member inter-ministerial committee that will ultimately approve the fighter procurement deal. The Italian delegation’s visit signals a formal push to present the Typhoon as a competitive option, especially amid concerns in Dhaka over cost, logistics, and long-term support packages from different suppliers.
Leonardo S.p.A. is a state-backed multinational specializing in aerospace, defense, and security technologies, with programs spanning aircraft, space systems, and electronics. The company is actively involved in key NATO and European defense projects and is a core participant in the Eurofighter consortium. Leonardo’s Typhoons for the Kuwait Air Force are the first to include the new Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar.
Bangladesh has previously shifted positions on defense purchases. The government at one point considered acquiring Chinese J-10CE fighters and later evaluated Sukhoi Su-30s from Russia. Such reversals have made the country known in the international defense market for procurement turbulence and long decision timelines.