Budget committee approves €3.75 billion deal for advanced fighter jets, signaling commitment to NATO objectives and modernization of the German Air Force.
Germany’s budget committee has given the green light to a long-planned order for advanced Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets, approving a €3.75 billion ($4.36 billion) procurement of 20 additional aircraft built to the Tranche 5 standard.
Cutting-Edge Technology for Electronic Warfare
The German Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced that the combat jets would be equipped with E-scan radars, with deliveries scheduled from 2031 to 2034.
„The Eurofighter is the mainstay of the German combat aircraft fleet,” the MoD stated. „The procurement of Tranche 5 [aircraft] serves to gradually transfer the capabilities of the aging Tornado fighter jet in the area of Electronic Combat and Reconnaissance (ECR) into a future-proof platform with which Germany will continue to” honor its NATO objectives.
Complementing Existing Orders
This newly approved Eurofighter Tranche 5 order, first announced in June, complements a separate purchase of 38 units already under contract with Airbus through the Project Quadriga acquisition program.
The Eurofighter consortium comprises four nations: Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK.
A Lucrative Deal and Enhanced Capabilities
This latest Typhoon order is the most significant of seven weapon system acquisitions approved by the budget committee. The approvals also include an estimated €412 million in funding for Eurofighter simulators to support pilot training. In addition, a project to upgrade the electronic warfare capabilities of Germany’s Typhoon fleet, at a cost of roughly €1.13 billion and dedicated specifically to „suppression of ground-based air defense” capabilities, has also been signed off.
„The Eurofighter is to be optimized with the [Saab produced] AREXIS self-protection system and corresponding air-to-ground guided missiles and further enabled for electronic warfare,” the German MoD statement said.
Saab’s AREXIS: A Key Component
Berlin initially selected Arexis for an electronic attack requirement in 2023. Mikael Corp, sales director of fighter electronic warfare at Saab, told Breaking Defense in May that Arexis is the „default configuration” for Swedish Air Force Gripen E/F jets. He also noted that deliveries of the EW sensor to Airbus, in preparation for integration on German Typhoons, had already taken place.
Other Approved Contracts
In addition to the Eurofighter investments, the budget committee also approved contracts for armor-piercing ammunition, medium-range boats for naval special forces, and minehunting sonar systems for Class 332 vessels.
