Germany Puts Its First Eurofighters into Service

The German air force announced April 30 that it had officially put its first five Eurofighter jets into service in the northern city of Rostock.

The five aircraft, which will be used mainly for training purposes, were given to the Steinhoff fighter squadron based in Laage.

Germany, which was the first country to take delivery of the European-made fighter but the second — after Italy — to put it into service, has ordered 180 of the combat aircraft at a cost of 80 million euros ($95 million) each.

The Eurofighter Typhoon is a multi-role combat jet with a range of 2,500 kilometres (1,560 miles) and can be equipped with a mix of missiles, depending on its mission.

It is built by a four-nation consortium comprising the French-Spanish-German group EADS, Britain’s BAE Systems and Italy’s Alenia.

Britain has ordered 232 aircraft, Italy 121 and Spain 87. Last year Austria became the first nation outside the consortium to place an order, asking for 18. Greece has committed to 60 with an option for a further 30 aircraft.