Tornado Fighter IDS

Description: The mainstay of the RAF strike/attack force is the Tornado GR1. Designed and built as a collaborative project in the UK, Germany and Italy, the Tornado is in service with all three air forces and the German Navy. It is a twin-seat, twin-engined, variable geometry aircraft and is supersonic at all altitudes. The Tornado is capable of carrying a... ( +expand to view full text )

Description: The mainstay of the RAF strike/attack force is the Tornado GR1. Designed and built as a collaborative project in the UK, Germany and Italy, the Tornado is in service with all three air forces and the German Navy. It is a twin-seat, twin-engined, variable geometry aircraft and is supersonic at all altitudes. The Tornado is capable of carrying a wide range of conventional stores, including the JP233 anti-airfield weapon, the ALARM anti-radar missile, and laser-guided bombs, as well as the WE-177 nuclear variable-yield free-fall bomb, first introduced into service in 1966. The last WE-177 was withdrawn from service in 1998. The program to upgrade 142 Tornado interdictor strike aircraft from GR1 to GR4 standard is proceeding to schedule. The aircraft system enhancements now being developed will ensure that the aircraft can seek out and attack its targets more effectively, taking advantage of the new 'smart' weapons that will progressively become available, and make it less vulnerable to counter-attack. The first Tornado GR4 squadrons started forming in 1998.