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British Air Force Typhoon fighter join major German Air Force MAGDay exercise.
According to information published by the British Royal Air Force on June 28, 2020, Typhoon fighter aircraft from British RAF (Royal Air Force) Coningsby in Lincolnshire have this week taken part in a major German Air Force MAGDay exercise over the southern North Sea.
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Typhoon fighter aircraft of the British Royal Air Force (Picture source Britsih Air Force)
In a sign of the growing relationship between two key European NATO Allies, the Typhoons, from XI (Fighter) Squadron, together with an RAF Voyager from RAF Brize Norton have this week joined German Typhoons and Tornados plus aircraft from several other NATO Allies and partner nations on Exercise MAGDay.
The MAGDAYs are regular training events for the Multinational Air Group, for which Germany is the framework nation. Each event is comprised of two-day preparation and flying phases and gauges progress made and further increased interoperability among the participating Allies.
As part of the exercise the RAF Typhoons and German Eurofighters conducted Air to Air refuelling, from a RAF Voyager off German North Sea coast before conducting further training over Northern Germany.
As well as the flying, Exercise MAGDay also created an ideal environment to test the RAF’s ability to communicate with other national communication systems within the NATO Alliance, an important aspect for coalition air operations.
This edition of Exercise MAGDay in addition to the RAF and German participation, also saw US and Dutch F-16 fighters and Swiss Air Force F18 Hornets. The Air to Air refuelling was carried out by a RAF Voyager, a German A310 and a A400M plus a US KC135 tanker.
The British Air Force Typhoon FGR.Mk 4 is a highly capable and extremely agile fourth-generation multi-role combat aircraft, capable of being deployed for the full spectrum of air operations, including air policing, peace support and high-intensity conflict. Initially deployed in the air-to-air role as the Typhoon F.Mk 2, the aircraft now has a potent, precision multi-role capability as the FGR4. The pilot performs many essential functions through the aircraft's hands on throttle and stick (HOTAS) interface which, combined with an advanced cockpit and the Helmet Equipment Assembly (HEA), renders Typhoon superbly equipped for all aspects of air operations.
Although Typhoon has flown precision attack missions in all its combat deployments to date, its most essential role remains the provision of quick reaction alert (QRA) for UK and Falkland Islands airspace. Detachments have also reinforced NATO air defence in the Baltic and Black Sea regions.