Kuwait awaits Typhoons
Senior Kuwaiti military officers and Sheikh Azzam Al-Sabah, the Kuwaiti ambassador to Italy, line up in front of one of the initial two Typhoon Tranche 3A aircraft being delivered to Kuwait. (Photo: KUNA)
The first pair of 28 Eurofighter Typhoon Tranche 3A aircraft for the Kuwait Air Force are set to arrive in the country on 14 December.
The Kuwait Air Force has received its first pair of Eurofighter Typhoon Tranche 3A aircraft from Leonardo, according to state-run news agency KUNA.
The aircraft were handed over in Italy by Leonardo before their scheduled arrival in Kuwait on 14 December.
Sheikh Azzam Al-Sabah, the Kuwaiti ambassador to Italy, said at the handover ceremony: ‘Today, with this step, we are entering a new phase of cooperation and coordination between the Italian and Kuwaiti Ministries of Defense in order to establish an industrial, technical and educational base in the State of Kuwait.’
Kuwait signed a €7.96 billion ($8.8 billion) contract with Leonardo in April 2016 for 28 Tranche 3A aircraft, to include Storm Shadow, Brimstone and other air-to-surface weapons.
Additional features of the Kuwaiti aircraft include the Lockheed Martin Sniper laser designator pod, the DRS-Cubic ACMI P5 combat training pod, enhanced VOR navigation aids and the Captor E-Scan radar with antenna repositioner.
Initial deliveries were scheduled originally for 2020 but Leonardo admitted in its half-year financial results presentation in July 2020 that a delay until 2021 was likely.
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