New trials success for Fylde built aircraft

A further series of flight trials of Eurofighter Typhoon with the high precision Brimstone air-to-surface weapon have been successfully completed at BAE Systems' site in Warton.
By The Newsroom
Published 15th Mar 2017, 12:00 BST
Updated 24th Mar 2017, 11:06 BST
P3E TyphoonP3E Typhoon
P3E Typhoon

The trials are part of ongoing development work on the Phase 3 Enhancement (P3E) package for Typhoon whihc will enhance its ground attack ability.

It will also deliver further sensor and mission system upgrades as part of Project CENTURION – the programme to ensure a smooth transition of Tornado capabilities on to Typhoon for the Royal Air Force by the end of 2018.

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The trials were conducted using the UK Typhoon Instrumented Production Aircraft (IPA) 6, and formed part of work to gather air data on the weapon and expand the carriage envelope. Firing trials are now scheduled for later this year to test the effectiveness of the weapon in operational scenarios.

Steve Formoso, Chief Test Pilot for BAE Systems Military Air & Information business, said: “This series of flight trials has included Aero Data Gathering (ADG) flights to test how the addition of the Brimstone weapon and other assets interacts with the aircraft’s flight control system software.

“The results have been excellent, with the pilot maintaining manoeuvrability whilst carrying a heavy weapons load. The detailed results of these trials will now be analysed.”

The trials programme for Brimstone is running alongside ongoing Typhoon developments with Meteor and Storm Shadow weapons.

See also: Typhoon upgrades could secure jobs

Related topics:BAE SystemsFyldeWarton