Britain Says It Has Corrected The Problem

Spain and Germany both have grounded their fleets of Eurofighter combat aircraft while they await the results of a probe into possible problems with the airplane's ejection system.

Spanish Eurofighter File Photo

Germany grounded its jets last Wednesday, according to the international news service AFP, with Spain following a day later. The German defense ministry said that the problem was noticed during an inspection and brought to the attention of the aircraft's manufacturers. "(I)n certain circumstances the ejector seat does not operate faultlessly in case of emergency," a German defense ministry spokesman said.

File Photo

Britain says it has taken corrective action on the ejection seats in its Eurofighters following an accident in Spain last month in which a Saudi Air Force officer was fatally injured during a training flight. The Spanish instructor aboard the aircraft was able to eject safely, but the pilot did not survive. Britain says it has made modifications to the harness system on the seats, and has returned all 54 of its Typhoons to service. "The safety of our personnel is paramount," said an RAF spokesperson. "sufficient modifications have now been undertaken and non-operational Typhoon flights have resumed."

The Eurofighter is built by a consortium made up of EADS, BAE Systems, and Alenia/Finmeccanica.

FMI: www.eurofighter.com