With fifth-generation, even sixth-generation fighter jets increasingly dominating the center stage on the global battlefield, the future of a fourth-generation aircraft like the Eurofighter Typhoon remains highly uncertain. As much as the Typhoon undertakes several highly multirole missions and continues to be upgraded, the non-stealth Typhoon is ever more coming to be considered as not as well suited for contested airspace.
Retained until at least 2040, the Eurofighter Typhoon, according to the Royal Air Force, is to be retained, as operating costs for the Eurofighter are considerably more efficient than for the F-35 and other fifth-generation fighters; consequently, it would make more sense to retain the Eurofighter for air policing and quick reaction alerts. Its technological content is less sensitive and can quite simply be replaced in instances where it has been lost.
The Eurofighter Typhoon has served the RAF for 20 years and has earned great respect in terms of flexibility. Even as most of the attention focuses on fifth-generation fighters, the non-stealth Eurofighter remains relevant for quick reaction alerts as well as air-policing missions. According to some experts, the Typhoon does well in such roles primarily because of better range, much lower costs, and good low-level performance.
Now that the Eurofighter is becoming obsolescent and its technology less sensitive, the loss of an aircraft in these contested spaces is much less of an issue. The RAF is unfazed by deploying the Eurofighter in such an environment without a fear that their most advanced technology may be compromised by losing one of those aircraft.
The Eurofighter has evolved consistently with the changes of having the latest avionics, electronics, and defense systems. Which made it an expensive price tag, hence rendering the question of whether it’s cheaper to have a newer one instead.
These cost-related factors have much to do with the decision of the RAF to continue rotating the Eurofighter in their arsenal. “The F-35, especially the F-35B, is much more expensive to operate than the Typhoon,” as reported by Air Force Technology. The Eurofighter does not require such a low-observable coating to maintain, and most of the supply chain is under the control of the UK, which gives the country a great measure of ownership and leverage.
The Eurofighter has a very unique feature in the form of a delta-wing paired with canards, a combination that is rarely used. Eurofighter’s airframe is made of light materials, and more than 80 percent consists of composite materials, which gives it an estimate of 6,000 flight hours.
Eurofighter is powered by two Eurojet EJ200 engines that produce an afterburning thrust of 20,230 pounds. EJ200 boasts of having a high thrust-to-weight ratio, super cruises, and fuel efficiency with economy.
The Eurofighter is not a stealth aircraft, but its non-stealth configuration remains perfectly acceptable for quick-reaction missions; the problem is that it would probably die very quickly in highly contested airspace.
The Eurofighter Typhoon approaches obsolescence in a world of fifth-generation fighters, yet it remains an essential part of the operations of the RAF, balancing cost and capability in an evolving landscape.