Germany also considering F-15, F/A-18E/F as possible Tornado replacement

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World Defense & Security News - Germany
 
 
Germany also considering F-15, F/A-18E/F as possible Tornado replacement
 
According to Reuters, Germany required classified data from US military on F-15 and F/A-18E/F fighter jets as it aims to replace its aged fleet of Panavia Tornado IDS/ECR fighter aircraft, the news agency said on Sept. 29, 2017.
     
Germany now F A 18E F as possible Tornado replacement 640 001Three Tornado fighter jets from the Luftwaffe
(Credit: Luftwaffe)
     
In a letter sent by the German MoD's planning division and review by Reuters, German military would have identified Boeing's F-15 and F/A-18E/F fighter jets as potential candidates for replacing Tornado jets.

A briefing would take place in November, a few months after a similar meeting in July about the Lockheed Martin F-35 JSF fighter jet.

The German MoD also requested information from the European planemaker Airbus Group. "Boeing said it was working with the US government to provide the information that Germany has requested," said Reuters.

Germany will decide in mid-2018 about how to replace its 85 remaining Tornado aircraft, which entered service with the Luftwaffe in 1981. In July, Berlin and Paris announced plans to design and produce a new European fighter jet, but it is unlikely to be available by 2025, when the Tornado fleet is slated to start going out of service.