Typhoon storms Berlin as air display takes it up a notch

The Luftwaffe put on an impressive display of capabilities in the air show yesterday with a Bundeswehr demonstration involving 17 aircraft and the star was the Eurofighter Typhoon.

The aircraft was described in the flight display programme as a “High-performance jet” which took part alongside the national display team Patrouille Suisse.

The simulation which took over ten minutes to perform was based on the ‘extraction’ of a group of civilians from a hazardous situation. The exercise began with a helicopter collecting the evacuees and transporting them to a remote air strip which in this case was ILA’s Schoenefeld runway. The transfer of civilians into a Transall transport aircraft followed, creating a requirement to secure the air strip. This was performed by two Eurofighter Typhoons responsible for the air supremacy over the scenario’s sky. The role of the ‘enemy’ was played by two F-4F Phantoms that when intercepted were forced to land on the airfield by the Typhoons.

Two Tornado jets were involved in the operation in the Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD) role. The Tornadoes were responsible for Close Air Support (CAS) securing the ground around the transport aircraft to ensure there was no interference with the ‘cargo’ whilst at the same time the two Typhoons circled above the Tornadoes in order to keep any air threats at bay.

To conclude the demonstration, the two Typhoons flanked the recently converted A310 MRTT multi-role transport tanker with a simulated air-to-air refuelling.

Commenting on the air display for Germany’s NTV news was one of our Eurofighter Typhoon experts Erwin Obermeier, former Eurofighter Programme Director.

Eurofigther Press Release