Leonardo, all about the first two Eurofighters delivered to Kuwait
Leonardo delivered the first two Eurofighter Typhoons to Kuwait. Here are the details
The first two Eurofighter Typhoons destined for the country's Air Force, delivered by Leonardo, landed yesterday in Kuwait.
He made known the group of Italian defense led by Alessandro Profumo.
"Excellent operation for Italy, it is the demonstration of the success of the products of the national industry abroad and represents an important step for the consolidation of the position of the Italian industry in the world" declared the Minister of Defense Lorenzo Guerini yesterday after the 'delivery of the first two Eurofighter Typhoons took place in Kuwait.
“The Eurofighter Typhoons we built for the Kuwait Air Force are the most advanced ever produced in the history of the European program” underlined Alessandro Profumo, CEO of Leonardo.
The two aircraft are equipped with the Captor-E electronic scanning radar developed by Leonardo. They are the most advanced “Typhoons” from an avionic point of view.
The two aircraft are part of a larger order of 28 aircraft, destined for the country's Air Force. In April 2016, Kuwait signed a € 7.96 billion contract with Leonardo for 28 Tranche 3A aircraft, which will include Storm Shadow, Brimstone and other air-to-surface weapons.
In the spring, Leonardo began to collect from the contract : around 300 million with a transfer from Kuwait. The contract saw the Piazza Monte Grappa group invest many resources, which have absorbed part of the cash in the last two or three years.
Aircraft deliveries were originally scheduled to start in 2020, but have also been postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. With completion initially scheduled for 2023, the contract makes Kuwait the eighth customer of the Eurofighter aircraft.
All the details.
THE DELIVERY OF THE FIRST TWO AIRCRAFT
As stated in Leonardo's note, "the transfer flight of the first two Kuwaiti aircraft was made possible thanks to the support of the Italian Air Force which guaranteed the" Air to Air Refueling trail "through a complex operational activity". Two KC-767 tankers of the 14 ° Stormo di Pratica di Mare and two Eurofighters of the 4 ° Stormo Caccia di Grosseto escorted the pair of Kuwait Air Force aircraft.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF LEONARDO'S EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON FOR THE KUWAIT AIR FORCE
The Eurofighter Typhoon for the Kuwait Air Force is an aircraft featuring a wide range of operational capabilities, built by Leonardo based on the specific needs of the Kuwaiti Air Force.
ASSEMBLY AND TEST FLIGHTS IN TURIN CASELLE
As AinOnline recalled, “the first Kuwaiti Typhoon began final assembly in October 2018 ″ in Turin Caselle. Furthermore, "the first seven Kuwaiti pilots graduated from the flight training courses of the Italian Air Force on 5 July 2020."
Also in the Leonardo factory in Turin Caselle, the first pair of Eurofighter Typhoon fighter-bombers from Kuwait began flying last October.
THE DETAILS OF THE AGREEMENT
The contract signed by the former Finmeccanica in 2016 includes supplies in the sectors of logistics, operational support and training of flight crews and ground personnel, which will be carried out in collaboration with the Italian Air Force.
The agreement also includes upgrading the infrastructure in Kuwait necessary for the aircraft to operate.
THE PARTICIPATION OF THE FORMER FINMECCANICA IN THE EUROFIGHTER CONSORTIUM
Four countries participate in the Eurofighter program: Italy, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom. It is managed on an industrial level by the Eurofighter Consortium in which Leonardo (with 21%), Airbus Group and Bae Systems participate. However, the Italian defense group has an industrial share in the program of 36%.
THE NEW AESA RADAR
In particular, Leonardo plays a key role in the aeronautical component and in that of on-board electronics. The group is also the protagonist of the new AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) electronic scanning radar which characterizes the Eurofighters ordered by Kuwait, increasing their performance and competitiveness.
The Aesa radar program is intended for the modernization of Eurofighter Typhoon fighter-bombers, both for the already built units of the German Luftwaffe and the Spanish Aire Army, and for the newly built aircraft. For this program Leonardo collaborates with the German Hensoldt ( in which he acquired a 25% stake last April ).
KUWAIT AMONG THE INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS OF THE PROGRAM
The four partner countries have already ordered 510 Typhoons. Today, international customers include Saudi Arabia (72 aircraft), Austria (15), Oman (12), Kuwait (28) and Qatar (24), for a total of 661 aircraft on order.
EMPLOYMENT EFFECTS
As the note from the group recalls, “in terms of employment, the Eurofighter program involves more than 100,000 people in Europe, of which over 20,000 in Italy, between direct, indirect and induced employment. Over 400 suppliers work in production for the Typhoon, of which 200 in Italy ”.
COOPERATION BETWEEN THE TWO AERONAUTICS
Finally, there are several international cooperation programs already launched between the Italian Armed Force and Kuwait. They mainly concern the training and training of personnel at the Air Force facilities.
As announced by the former Finmeccanica group, the Kuwait pilots are training at the 20th Group of the 4 ° Stormo di Grosseto. In addition, some Am instructors, together with Leonardo's test pilots, will support the initial training of the Kuwait Air Force pilots and the growth of the OCU (Operational Conversion Unit) at the Al Salem base.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/smartcity/leonardo-tutto-sui-primi-due-eurofighter-consegnati-al-kuwait/ on Wed, 15 Dec 2021 10:42:18 +0000.