(Adds more detail on the contract)
By Robert Wall
LONDON--The U.K., Germany, Italy and Spain on Wednesday jointly
committed to a 1 billion euro ($1.25 billion) upgrade to equip
their Eurofighter Typhoon combat jets with a more advanced type of
radar, the British defense ministry said.
"This contract marks a major milestone in the development of the
Typhoon program and offers a significant increase in the capability
of the aircraft," the U.K.'s defense equipment minister Philip
Dunne said in a statement.
International buyers increasingly require the kind of advance
radar that can track more targets on their strike aircraft. The
Typhoon's new radar system is called Captor-E.
The Typhoon combat jet is built by a consortium comprising BAE
Systems PLC (BAESY)--as system integrator--Airbus Group NV (AIR.FR)
and Italy's Finmeccanica SpA (FNC.MI).
BAE Systems, Europe's largest defense company, said on Wednesday
that its share of the contract is valued at GBP365 million ($572
million). Finmeccanica said its program share is valued at EUR400
million.
The European companies are eager to upgrade the Typhoon after
the fighter lost out to others in a series of international
competition for export orders. Japan, South Korea, and India are
among the countries opting for other jets. Typhoon production is at
risk of finishing before the end of the decade unless foreign
orders can be secured.
Lockheed Martin Corp., the world's largest defense company, and
Boeing Co. already offer the more advanced radar system on their
combat jets, as do European rivals Dassault Aviation SA and Saab
AB.
"This is a major step forward in the development of Typhoon,"
said Martin Taylor, managing director for combat air at BAE.
In recent years, the Eurofighter companies have been investing
their own money to mature the radar sensors and minimize the gap
with rivals in introducing the system. The radar first flew on a
Typhoon this year and is expected to enter service with the U.K.
Royal Air Force around 2020.
Write to Robert Wall at robert.wall@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires