Kuwait's Typhoon fighter jets production started.

With the innovative Captor-E E-Scan radar and several new additions to the weapon system, the aircraft will put the Kuwait Air Force at the front-line of the fighter technology when the aircraft enters into service.

Production activities have begun in order to comply with the contract and the Customer expectations. Long Lead Time items procurement has been immediately activated and the Supply Chain has been mobilized.

"Production activities started in the second half of 2016 and are currently in line with the baseline plan and, in some cases, ahead of schedule. The wing skins of the first left hand wing at Leonardo and right hand wing at Airbus Defence & Space in Spain have already completed and the assembly phase will start before the end of 2017," said Giancarlo Mezzanatto, Eurofighter Programme Unit Vice President of the Leonardo Aircraft Division.

"The first rear fuselage section is going to start the “Stage 2” assembly phase at Leonardo in early 2018, while the “Stage 1” assembly phase is already running in BAE Systems for the first five aircraft. The centre fuselage section, produced by Airbus Defence & Space in Germany, will start the assembly in the first half of 2018 having already commenced the “pre-assy” phase according to the plan," Mezzanatto added.

“The capability packages for Kuwait will include the integration of Storm Shadow and Brimstone and other air-to-surface weapons. These features enrich the multi-role characteristics of the aircraft and enhance the weapon system in a role in which the aircraft is excelling since 2011 with the operations over Libya and now Syria and Iraq."

“This configuration foresees the integration of a new advanced laser designator pod (the Lockheed Martin Sniper) that will expand Eurofighter’s portfolio of cleared laser designator pods, the introduction of the DRS-Cubic ACMI P5 combat training pod, an enhanced navigation aid (VOR) and the E-Scan radar CAPTOR with its antenna repositioner”, says Mezzanatto.

The activities to establish infrastructures in Kuwait to operate the aircraft are also proceeding according to the plans. The detail design has already been completed with the finalization of all data packages. The construction activities started in August this year.