Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoons will receive a comprehensive upgrade to their self protection system that will enable it to identif...
Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoons will receive a comprehensive upgrade to their self protection system that will enable it to identify and defeat known and future threats, further improving survivability of aircraft while operating in heavily defended environments.
A two year contract has been signed between NETMA and Eurofighter for upgrading the Praetorian Defensive Aids Sub System (DASS) of UK’s Eurofighter Typhoon combat jets.
Italian Leonardo will carry out the development work, while integration on to RAF fleet will be carried out by BAE Systems.
The €45M (£40M) contract is part of a continuous capability upgrade to ensure UK Typhoons can operate in any environment that may arise in future.
Praetorian is a suite of protective electronic systems installed inside the Typhoon, which includes sensors and countermeasures, that seamlessly work together to defend the jets from a variety of threats.It provides protection against air-to-air and surface-to-air threats, by monitoring and proactively responding to the operational environment. It contains Electronic Support Measures, missile warning, on-board electronic countermeasures and towed radar decoys to detect, evaluate and counter threats at maximum range.
Leonardo leads the EuroDASS consortium (which also includes HENSOLDT, Elettronica and Indra) to provide the Praetorian system, which is a baseline system on the more than 500 Eurofighter Typhoons delivered to date.
A majority of the UK’s new capability enhancement contract will be carried out by Leonardo at its electronic warfare centre in Luton, UK, while integration work and airworthiness clearances will be carried out by the UK’s Typhoon prime contractor BAE Systems in Warton, UK.
In a further technology development, Leonardo is currently leading the EuroRADAR consortium in the development of the Captor-E (E-Scan) radar for Typhoon. The new AESA radar will further enhance the capability of the aircraft by providing a 60 percent wider field of regard. Kuwait will be the first Typhoon operator to receive the new radar, in line with initial deliveries to the nation.
More than 599 Typhoon jets have been ordered, most recently by Kuwait who contracted with Leonardo in 2016 to procure 28 aircraft. Kuwait will receive the latest (P3E) standard of the Typhoon which will include the Praetorian DASS.
