Eurofighter Typhoon now on QRA Duty in Five Air Forces

The Spanish Air Force has announced the assignment of Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) responsibilities to Eurofighter Typhoon. All five customer Air Forces now operate the weapon system in the air defence role, with Spain following the leads of Germany, Italy, United Kingdom and Austria in deploying their newest weapon system to the first line of defence.

As of 17 July 2008, Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft are working in complement with Mirage F-1s and F-18s in securing Spanish airspace, fulfilling the role out of Morón AFB.

Commenting on the announcement, Aloysius Rauen, Eurofighter CEO, stated: "In a little over six weeks, three customer Air Forces have declared Eurofighter Typhoon operational for QRA tasks. Five Air Forces now deliver an unmatched air defence capability, bolstering national, European and NATO security efforts."

Italy, in December 2005, was the first nation to assign QRA tasks to Eurofighter Typhoon. The United Kingdom followed suit in July 2007 while Germany and Austria began QRA and air surveillance operations with the type in June and July 2008 respectively. Also in July, the Royal Air Force officially declared their XI Squadron Eurofighter Typhoons as multi-role capable on completion of their deployment to the United States for Exercise Green Flag West.

The Air Forces have accumulated over 42,000 in-service flying hours with Eurofighter Typhoon which, when added to the Test Fleet's contribution of almost 6,000 hours, accounts for almost 50,000 flying hours.