04 ef_low_observability and high fleet effectiveness

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Hallbergmoos, J une 2012

Eurofighter Typhoon: low observability and high fleet effectiveness

To survive in a present-day, hostile, combat scenario, all modern fighter aircraft must bedesigned with "stealth" in mind and some aircraft have been designed with stealth asthe overriding design objective. In some cases this is undertaken regardless of theimpact that this approach might have on other critically important features such asmanoeuvrability, weapon payload and, more importantly, fleet effectiveness and

affordability.

Designing a fighter aircraft for stealth as primary target means making compromises toits aerodynamic and manoeuvre performance as well as restricting the number and typeof weapons that aircraft can carry. The carriage of weapons on conventional under-wingpylons negates the stealth design. Some designs, as the B-2 are true stealth aircraft,some other in the fighter-bomber sector, are partial stealth, with their stealthinesslimited to the frontal sector, and so they are very vulnerable in real combat conditions asthe performances in terms of flight parameters and fleet effectiveness have beencompromised by the need to reach this partial stealthiness.

The design of the Eurofighter Typhoon has not sacrificed flexibility of weapon carriage,

manoeuvrability or performance to produce an inflexible stealth aircraft but it still doescontain a comprehensive suite of stealth features:

Visual Detection: the combination of small airframe and smokeless engines make theEurofighter Typhoon very difficult to detect visually.

Radar Reflections: although not of the classic angular, zigzag edged shape usuallyassociated with stealth designs, Eurofighter Typhoon's shape and some verysensitive design features as the air intake, the canopy and windshield, balancesaerodynamic requirements, such as low drag and high lift, with the need to minimisereflected radar energy in all directions, producing a small signature, which incombination with the highly advanced electronic warfare system, leads to theEurofighter's excellent survivability.

Passive Systems: using a combination of IRST (Infra-Red Search and Track),passive radar operations, new generation ALRAAM, Advanced Long Range Air-to-AirMissiles, ASRAAM, Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missiles and helmet aiming, theEurofighter Typhoon pilot can electronically detect, engage and kill other aircraftwithout a hostile pilot ever being aware of the aircraft's presence. Similarly, with FLIR(Forward Looking Infra-Red) and night vision equipment, the Eurofighter Typhoonpilot is able to operate passively in any weather condition or at night, detecting andengaging ground targets without emitting tell-tale radar transmissions.


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Defensive Aids: Eurofighter Typhoon's electronic warfare and self-protection systemhas a number of passive modes, allowing the detection of enemy emissions withoutrevealing the Eurofighter aircraft's presence.

Supercruise: the ability to accelerate to and maintain supersonic speeds without theuse of engine afterburner, not only give to the aircraft an edge in any combatscenario against any possible target, but also drastically reduces detectabilitythrough conventional infra-red sensors whilst at the same time increasing stand-off

range.

Communications: any radio transmission can reveal an aircraft's position but theEurofighter Typhoon is able to receive information, both in the form of voice and data- such as target information - from its datalink and secure radios. Similarly, inter-flyingformation communications can also be achieved via datalink, thereby minimising theneed for radio transmissions.

These features, inherent within the aircraft airframe and onboard system design, aresupported by a cockpit that gives the pilot a clear tactical picture and continuous andinstant control over the level of emissions from the aircraft. The pilot can operatecompletely "silent", yet still receive and pass-through target information from and to

other aircraft and the Eurofighter Typhoon's own passive sensors, throughout anengagement, at the same time relying on the aircraft's stealth features to protect itagainst detection.

All these features ensure that the Eurofighter Typhoon has high survivability and theability to operate independently from ground and airborne control agencies in denseelectronic warfare environments. The Eurofighter Typhoon is, by any standard, a lowobservability aircraft with a fleet effectiveness superior to any other competitor.


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High Resolution images of the Eurofighter Typhoon can be downloaded from our website: http://www.eurofighter.com/media/image-library.html

For More Information contact:

Theodor BenienHead of PR & Communications

Tel.: +49 811 80 1555Fax: +49 811 80 1557Mobile: +49 160 93 99 38 40Mail: [email protected]

Kathryn HolmExternal Communications

Tel: +49 (0)811 80 1587Mob: +49 (0)172 88 12110Fax: +49 (0)811 80 1557Mail: [email protected]

04 ef_low_observability and high fleet effectiveness

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