News story

Typhoon jets to get long-range strike capability

Storm Shadow missiles are to be fitted to RAF Typhoon fast jets following a £120 million agreement signed today.

• From: Ministry of Defence, Defence Equipment and Support, and Philip Dunne MP
• Published: 17 July 2014

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

A 29 (Reserve) Squadron Typhoon aircraft (library image)

Storm Shadow, which provides long-range air-to-surface capabilities, is one of the most advanced missiles of its kind. It is capable of defeating various targets, including bridges, airfields, harbours and parked aircraft.

The missiles, produced by MBDA, have previously been deployed on Tornado GR4 aircraft during operations over Iraq and Libya. These will now be fitted onto Typhoon tranche 2 and 3 aircraft ready to enter service with the RAF in 2018.

Welcoming today’s announcement, Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology Philip Dunne said:

Storm Shadow has a deserved reputation for accuracy and reliability. The integration of Storm Shadow onto RAF Typhoons is another powerful sign of our commitment to the continued capability development of this world-class aircraft.

The ability to prosecute stand-off targeting while maintaining control of the airspace will provide Typhoon with unique battle-winning capability.

The agreement, made at the Farnborough International Air Show today, 17 July, was signed between the NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency, on behalf of the partner nations, and Eurofighter GmbH.

Published 17 July 2014