Leonardo, this is when Italy will complete the deliveries of the Eurofighter Typhoons to Kuwait
“Kuwait will receive 13 Eurofighters from Italy in the next 18 months”, announced Defense Minister Crosetto on an official visit to the Gulf country
Italy will deliver 13 Eurofighter Typhoons to Kuwait over the next 18 months.
This was stated by the Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, in an interview with the Kuwait Times newspaper, taken up by Agenzia Nova , in which he spoke about the growing bilateral cooperation between Kuwait and Italy, particularly in the defense field.
On 6 March Crosetto was on an official visit to the Gulf country, where he met his Kuwaiti counterpart, Fahad Yusuf Saud Al Sabah, and visited the Italian contingent, as well as being received by the Chief of Staff, Bander al Muzain, and by undersecretary of the Ministry of Defense, Abdullah Mishal Al Sabah, the press agency reports. “Talks focused on cooperation between Italy and Kuwait in the fight against Daesh and in the promotion of regional stability” added the note from the ministry.
In April 2016 Kuwait signed a €7.96 billion contract with Leonardo for 28 Tranche 3A aircraft, which include Storm Shadow, Brimstone and other air-to-surface weapons.In spring 2021 Leonardo began to collect from the contract : around 300 million with a bank transfer from Kuwait. Deliveries began in December 2021.
The Eurofighter acquisition program is part of a collaboration between Kuwait and Italy, in which the air forces of both countries train together. Our country has already delivered 15 fighters and with the next 13 Eurofighters they will complete the fleet of F/A-18 Hornet and Mirage F1 jets of the Kuwaiti Air Force.
As Leonardo has already underlined, "the "Eurofighter Kuwait" program is part of a broader and deeper collaboration between the Italian Air Force and the Kuwait Air Force, which includes operational activity, pilot training and support". In fact, the armed force is ensuring, in Italy, the initial training of engineers and technicians who will support the activity of the Typhoon fleet in the country.
All the details.
LEONARDO'S ROLE IN THE EUROFIGHTER CONSORTIUM
Furthermore, please note that 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 of 36% in the program, playing a key role in aeronautical components and on-board electronics, supplying over 60% of the electronic systems on board the aircraft.
The former Finmeccanica group plays a particularly important role in the evolution of the Eurofighter thanks also to the new AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar which equips the Eurofighter Typhoons destined for Kuwait, increasing the performance and competitiveness of the aircraft.
THE COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE ITALIAN AND KUWATIAN AM
For his part, the Minister of Defense recalled that the deep cooperation in the defense sector "is underlined, in particular, but not only, by the 'Eurofighter Kuwait' programme, a pillar of our bilateral cooperation, currently at a very advanced stage of implementation ”.
“Additionally, we offered Kuwaiti Air Force pilots the opportunity to attend training courses at the International Flying School in Italy. The school currently hosts pilots from Austria, Canada, Germany, Japan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and the United Kingdom,” said Crosetto. The project is part of a wide-ranging initiative which sees the Italian Ministry of Defense involved in foreign industrial and defense policy operations, in which the Italian aerospace company Leonardo is also involved, Agenzia Nova specifies.
THE CREATION OF A FLIGHT ACADEMY FOR THE KUWAITIAN FORCES
Regarding the creation of a flight academy for the training of pilots of the Kuwaiti forces, the minister said that it is a project aimed at developing cutting-edge skills, know-how and technical capabilities. The aim of the initiative is to create a center of excellence for military flight training that will improve professional standards and contribute to regional security through the sharing of knowledge and best practices.
“Italy is ready to provide the necessary support, based on the experience gained over several decades, in a sector in which it is a leader both in the development of trainers and in the provision of training. Currently, seven Kuwaiti pilots are attending the first part of our international training program with Saudi, Qatari and British pilots at the Galatina Air Force Flight School, Puglia. At the end of the second phase, pilots of fourth and fifth generation fighter aircraft will undergo a further specialization phase at the Decimomannu International Flight School, in Sardinia. The latter is part of the Ifts Hub (International Flight Training School), where we will also offer training opportunities for instructors and pilot trainers, who will be able to choose to train their national pilots in Italy or return to their countries to exploit the skills acquired ”, explained Crosetto.
AND THE BILATERAL ONE BETWEEN ROME AND KUWAIT CITY
Finally, Crosetto stated that “Italy and Kuwait are actively engaged in countering the threat of Daesh and promoting regional stability. Today's meeting intends to give common initiatives even greater determination and vigor. Italy and Kuwait will continue to work together to address common threats, in a period of great instability."
Our cooperation, which has spanned over 60 years, has seen significant developments in crucial sectors such as defence. The strengthening of bilateral cooperation, especially in the context of defence, is a fundamental pillar to guarantee regional peace and stability, while offering mutual investment opportunities and stimulating our economies", underlined the minister – Agenzia Nova reports – recalling that the defense ministries of the two countries are working to renew the recently expired memorandum of understanding on defense cooperation.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/smartcity/leonardo-ecco-quando-litalia-completera-le-consegne-degli-eurofighter-typhoon-al-kuwait/ on Mon, 11 Mar 2024 08:11:13 +0000.