Turkey Receives Final Offer for Eurofighter Typhoon

Italy’s Alenia Aeurotica made its final offer to the Turkish Defense Industry Undersecretariat for Eurofighter Typhoon aircrafts.

Eurofighter officials stated Turkey would assume a significant part of production, becoming a partner, not a customer, of the Eurofighter Consortium.

Italians stressed Turkey would thereby be granted “equal partnership” with equal voting right as other member nations have and offered Turkish government $9 billion, $6 billion and $3.2 billion work share in return for the purchase of 120, 80 and 40 aircrafts respectively.

According to the deal, aircrafts will be delivered after 2010.

The Eurofighter’s offer encompasses all Turkish airline and defense companies and allows access to source codes and other critical technologies and foresees repair and maintenance service by Turkey through the operational life of aircraft.

Eurofighter has so far delivered to Italy, Germany, Spain and Britain 100 Eurofighter Typhoon, which is considered as the most significant next-generation warplane.

Eurofighter has contracted 638 aircrafts to five EU countries plus 72 to Saudi Arabia. The Eurofighter Typhoon program is esteemed to be the most successful project of the European Aeronautic Defense & Space Co.

By Erkan Acar, Istanbul , ZAMAN, LINK