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Another Eurofighter Problem
A £50MILLION RAF Eurofighter has crashed — just weeks before the 1,500mph super jet is due to come into service. The Typhoon suffered “considerable” front-end damage after it nose-dived on landing. The pilot and co-pilot escaped unhurt when the jet’s front wheel failed to go down properly. Last night Ministry of Defence insiders claimed that the Eurofighter had suffered a series of problems with its front wheel. But official sources insisted the accident at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire on Monday was the first involving a wheel failure.

The Eurofighter has previously been heavily criticised for its spiralling costs and teething problems. Britain has ordered 144 Typhoons — with the first due to come into service with the launch of a new squadron at the beginning of April. Last night RAF top brass insisted that the accident would not delay the start-up date of the Typhoon unit — Number 3 Fighter Squadron. An RAF spokesman said: “The damage to the aircraft is being assessed and the incident is the subject of an inquiry.”

The Typhoon can fly at twice the speed of sound and above 65,000ft. RAF chiefs insist its agility means it can “out-dogfight” any jet in the world.
So we'll just avoid dogfights and stick with killing them with long range missiles. The ones sold to "un-friendly" countries, that is.
Critics have said that the plane — developed by the UK, Germany, Spain and Italy — was designed for an enemy that no longer exists, the former Soviet Union.
Critics tend to avoid talking about China and other people buying Russian jets. I wonder why? Well, no I don't

Two new aircraft carriers ordered by the Navy are due to carry 36 Typhoons each.
Posted by: lotp 2006-01-19
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=140238