RAF Typhoons now multi-role capable - Tuesday 1 July 2008

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The Royal Air Force’s Typhoon aircraft marked another milestone in its capability today as it was declared operational in the air-to-ground role, becoming the Service’s most advanced multi-role aircraft.

Following an exercise in the US where XI Sqn Typhoons acquitted themselves well in a major Air-Land Forces exercise, the Typhoon is now officially declared multi-role and has considerably increased the RAF’s war-fighting capability.

The multi-role capability means that RAF Typhoons can now carry out precision Ground Attack or Air Defence tasks as required before take-off, but before long will become “swing-role”, which means they will be able to alternate between roles within the same mission once airborne.

The declaration of the capability, officially known as the Multi-Role Operational Employment Date (OED), was announced by Commander-in-Chief RAF Air Command, Air Chief Marshal Sir Clive Loader who said:

“Typhoon is the most operationally flexible and effective aircraft the RAF has ever operated. In addition to Typhoon’s current capability in the Air Defence role, it will allow us the ability to deliver a wide range of precision and non-precision weapons in the Ground Attack role wherever and whenever needed. It is most relevant to the threats we face today.

“Typhoon can now perform both roles and offers unparalleled combat persistence. During the recent trials it achieved virtually 100 percent serviceability. With a service life of many decades, Typhoon’s time to deploy as a multi-role combat aircraft is still to come but the important fact is that this new capability is an extra club in the RAF’s golf bag.”

To mark the occasion a Typhoon equipped with its high-tech Litening III laser-designator pod flew over RAF Coningsby and demonstrated its ground-attack capability after having its theoretical fire directed precisely onto a target by Forward Air Controllers on the ground. Media attending then realised the target was their own tent when they saw themselves on the FAC’s monitor.

A data link from the Litening pod enabled the troops exercising a combat role to receive on a laptop the air “picture” that was beamed from many thousands of feet above them, allowing them to interpret enemy activity and take action. Typhoon is now able to drop Paveway 2, Enhanced Paveway 2 and freefall 1,000lb bombs.

From today a number RAF Typhoons will be at operational readiness to deploy overseas if deemed necessary by the Government. There are no plans at present to deploy Typhoon to Afghanistan or Iraq and the RAF’s Tornado GR4 Force is due to deploy to Kandahar next Spring to replace Harriers.

The Typhoon has been operational since July last year when it started taking on the Air Defence role of “Quick Reaction Alert” (QRA), the 24/7 readiness to intercept and deal with threats to the UK’s air space.

Mainland UK air defence is conducted from RAF Coningsby (Southern QRA) with Typhoons, and RAF Leuchars in Scotland (Northern QRA), currently with Tornado but within a few years with Typhoon also. The RAF also provides QRA over the Falklands with Tornado, but it is planned for Typhoon to assume that role next year.

 

Photographs: image 1, 3 and header by Geoff Lee/ Planefocus, image 2 by Cpl Pete George.

Image 1: (Larger size) RAF No 11 Squadron Typhoon at Green Flag, USA. The Typhoon is loaded with enhanced paveway 2 bombs, litening 111 designater pod and drop tanks. No 11 Squadron has detached to Nellis Air Force base in the Nevada desert for this exercise in the US.

Image 2: (Larger size) Commander-in-Chief (Cinc AIR) Air Command, Air Chief Marshal Clive Loader at a press conference.

Image 3: (Larger size) An RAF Typhoon drops a paveway bomb.

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