EADS, Customers in Showdown Over Eurofighter Tranche 3

Italian Eurofighters(click to view full) Fresh from brinksmanship around the go-forward plan for Europe’s multi-national A400M military transport, EADS has dived into another spat with European governments. The firm is reportedly threatening to suspend production of its 4+ generation Eurofighter Typhoon if the 4 consortium governments can’t firm up their promised 236 Tranche 3 orders by the end of Q1 2009. Tranche 3 Eurofighters will be the most capable aircraft in the 3-stage program, with full strike capabilities built in, and desired additions that include an AESA radar. In 2008, EADS submitted a range of procurement options to the aircraft’s launch customers (Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain), with the intention of offering them flexibility by dividing promised Tranche 3 orders over time, adding new technologies in faster, smaller stages instead of in large chunks, and other options. Nevertheless, the member countries have yet to commit, and are now late. This situation is actually somewhat familiar, as EADS halted production for about 6 months between the Tranche 1 and Tranche 2 orders… Eurofighter, Spain(click to view full) Reports were not clear concerning the threatened shutdown, but deliveries of Tranche 2 aircraft just began in late 2008, and Saudi Arabia’s in-process export […]