Overview

• Airbus will assemble the aircraft in Manching with deliveries scheduled from 2031 to 2034, according to the contract signed on Oct. 15.
• The Bundestag budget committee approved the buy on Oct. 8 as part of a €7 billion package, with the Defense Ministry previously citing a contract value of €3.75 billion.
• Tranche 5 jets will carry the ECRS Mk 1 AESA radar and Saab’s Arexis electronic-warfare suite to expand air-to-air performance and enable suppression of enemy air defenses.
• Berlin plans to replace part of the Tornado fleet and keep Eurofighters in service into the 2060s as the type is integrated into the Future Combat Air System ecosystem.
• Germany also advanced the Eurofighter EK effort, with 15 aircraft to be equipped for electronic combat and targeted for NATO certification by 2030 under a development program running to 2033.