Eurofighter squares up
	Tim Ripley reports on the Eurofighter Typhoon, Eurofighter International’s attempt to corner the combat aircraft market
					Eurofighter Typhoon is on target to sell more than 800 combat aircraft for export, according to leading executives of the four-nation consortium that produces the hi-tech combat aircraft. Greece was the first country to opt for the Typhoon, a contract was due to be signed in the final weeks of 1999, and Norway is to decide whether to buy up to 30 aircraft early in 2000. Mike Rudd, BAe Systems, Samlesbury head of Eurofighter new business told Global Defence Review that the company was well placed in the Norwegian contest and Norwegian industry was showing strong interest in participating in the Eurofighter consortium. “Greece has signalled and confirmed its commitment to join the Eurofighter programme, buying 60-90 aircraft” says Rudd. “We are in discussions to determine the exact nature of partnership in the programme and the NATO Eurofighter management agency. We are confident we will progress to a successful conclusion very soon.” Eurofighter had a hectic year in 1999 responding to requests for information and proposals from South Korea, Singapore, Netherlands, Australia, Poland and Czech Republic. “Overall the picture is of spectacular progress” says Rudd. “The company is ready to respond to customers from the middle east region. We perceive an operational requirement in Saudi Arabia in the near term to replace its Boeing F-15C Eagle and Panavia Tornado air defence variants. Eurofighter is the type of top-end capability appropriate for the Royal Saudi Air Force.” Rudd says Eurofighter partners are putting more focus on the beyond baseline capability development programme. “A number of additional capabilities are being discussed, such as Meteor, IRIS-T and reconnaissance systems, and additional weapons clearances with more air-to-surface capability.” New export sales organisation In November 1999, the four Eurofighter partners (Alenia Aerospazio, British Aeropace, Casa and DaimlerChrysler Aerospace), announced a new dedicated export sales organisation – Eurofighter International (EFI). This will focus on capturing 50 per cent of the estimated available market of 800 combat aircraft over the next 30 years, worth in excess of $57bn. It will be solely responsible for all export sales activities, providing the single contractual interface for export customers. EFI is fully backed by the strength and resources of the four partner companies in the Eurofighter consortium and will be based in London. Cesare Gianni, Alenia corporate vice president, with more than 20 years’ marketing experience, has been appointed president of Eurofighter International. He will be supported by three vice presidents; Manfred Wolff (campaigns), Andy Lewis (sales support) and Rob New (contracts/finance). “Although it is still relatively early in its life cycle it is already clear Eurofighter Typhoon is set to become one of Europe’s most successful exports,” said Cesare Gianni. “The current partner company lead arrangement, relying on the expertise of the partners in specific regions and countries, has worked well and it has led to two European nations with aspirations to join the programme. We are confident this new structure will take our export activities forward to the next level and help us achieve our ambitious target.” Filippo Bagnato, chairman of the board of Eurofighter International, said “This is an excellent new initiative. I very much welcome the setting up of this new organisation and the appointment of such a strong team to lead it. Together with Cesare Gianni and his colleagues I look forward to a great future for Eurofighter International.” Eurofighter International will work closely with the management of the core Eurofighter Typhoon (development, production and support) programme. Therefore the current relationships between Eurofighter GmbH, NETMA and the four MoD procurement executives and the air forces remain the same. Initially, the relationships with Greece, Norway and South Korea will be taken over by EFI, with the same individuals maintaining their marketing responsibilities. It is expected the core team at EFI will grow to be adequate to run two full campaigns and these numbers can be topped up by the partner companies as necessary. First series production Work has commenced on schedule and is now well under way on the major sub-assemblies for the early production aircraft – the first of 620 aircraft on order from Germany, Italy, Spain and UK. These sub-assemblies are taking shape at the Eurofighter partner company facilities across Europe, representing a major step forward for the programme. The first front fuselage cockpit half sections have been married-up at British Aerospace, Samlesbury. Assembly of individual half sections began in January 1999, and their coming together was a major milestone, with an unprecedented level of quality being achieved. The front and aft sections of the first centre fuselage have been mated at DaimlerChrysler Military Aircraft, Augsburg. The front section of the centre fuselage was assembled in Augsburg, while the aft part was finished in Bremen and was delivered to Augsburg in June. Mating of the two sections is complete, and the centre fuselage is now in the process of being covered with its carbon-fibre skin. Finally the centre fuselage will be delivered to Manching for equipment fitting early next year before the final assembly of IPA1 (the first of five instrumented production aircraft) begins at BAe Systems at Warton this year. The rear fuselage section was being assembled at BAe Systems, Samlesbury late last year with shipping to Alenia in Turin following shortly afterwards for completion of the remaining structural stages and for fitting out with equipment. The construction of the wings is also proceeding on schedule. The first production left hand wing has been successfully co-bonded at Alenia and the right hand wing at CASA using a new improved tooling process jointly developed by these two companies. The co-bonding process consists of bonding all integral wing spars to the previously cured lower wing skin. This highly advanced and complex operation reduces the requirement for fasteners through the wing fuel tank bottom skin thus reducing the overall mass of the aircraft and the potential for fuel leaks. These achievements represent another significant milestone in the wing production programme. In addition to this work on sub-assemblies, ordering of equipment from sub-contractors is making good progress and over 400 orders have been placed covering production investment and actual series production Construction of final assembly lines at the four Eurofighter partner companies is well under way with substantial investment in facilities and technology. Final assembly of the five IPA is expected to start from late summer 2000. ©
		Eurofighter is a twin engine, multi-role combat aircraft optimised for air superiority.

EXPORT STATUS BOARD - CURRENT ACTIVITIES
Nation	Requirement	Timeframe	Status
Norway	20 plus 10 option	decision early 2000	• EF office Oslo opened March 1999 • proposal submitted 1 June 1999
Greece	60–90	contract was anticipated at the end of last year	• selection confirmed April 1999| • EF office Athens opened July 1999
South Korea	40–60	decision late 2001	EF Office Seoul opened April 1998 • proposal submitted 1 Sept 1999 • flight evaluation expected early 2000 • final RFP mid 2000
Poland	60	long-term requirement	RFI response July 1999 • discussions underway
Czech Rep	possible 36	long-term requirement	RFI response Sept 1999 • discussions underway
Netherlands	possible 100 plus	decision 2005	RFI response October 1999 • discussions underway
Singapore	20–40	decision 2000/2001	RFI response submitted • evaluation underway
Saudi Arabia	possible 50–70	decision after 2000	• early discussions underway
Australia	60	decision after 2000	• discussions underway