Tornado IDS

Italy, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey came together at the recent ‘Anatolian Eagle’ exercise for joint training related to the needs of their ongoing real-world combat operations. The exercise, which took place at Konya Air Base in southwest Turkey from 24 May to 9 June, saw the Turkish Air Force (TuAF) deploy nearly 40 Lockheed […]

The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Saudi Arabia for air-to-ground munitions and associated equipment, parts and logistical support for an estimated cost of $1.29 billion. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale on November 13, 2015. […]

The Obama administration has notified Congress informally that it wants to resupply Saudi Arabia with thousands of precision-guided munitions, according to two people familiar with the proposal. The weapons that would be sold to the Saudis include Joint Direct Attack Munitions with GPS satellite guidance from Boeing Co., one of the U.S.’s most precise weapons, said […]

Britain is transferring Paveway IV precision guided bombs originally earmarked for the Royal Air Force to Saudi Arabia to enable the Gulf state to build stocks of the weapon being used against targets in Yemen and Syria, sources here said. The Ministry of Defence has swapped delivery positions on the production line at Raytheon UK […]

Raytheon Co., Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, Arizona, has been awarded a $32,221,204 modification (P00010) to previously awarded contract FA8681-13-C-0196 for Enhanced Paveway II guided bomb unit kits and a 10-year warranty for each kit. Contractor will provide 500 Enhanced Paveway II guided bomb units 49 and 50 kits (each kit includes an enhanced computer control […]

Italy will send four Tornado aircraft to join coalition operations against the Islamic State in Iraq, a Defense Ministry spokesman said on Friday. The aircraft, which will be based at Ahmed Al Jaber air base in Kuwait, will be used for reconnaissance missions only, he added. In a letter sent to the Italian parliament, Italian […]

Royal Air Force Tornados have conducted further operations in support of Kurdish ground forces engaged in combat with ISIL in north west Iraq. Overnight, 2 GR4s provided vital air support to Peshmerga forces advancing on an ISIL position, conducting a successful precision attack on an armed pick-up truck with a Paveway IV guided bomb.

Prime Minister David Cameron has announced the deployment of two more British Tornado planes to join the fight against Islamic State. He made the announcement during a visit to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, where British operations are based. The two Tornados join six already based in Cyprus. One will leave later and the second will […]

RAF Tornado GR4 aircraft on Tuesday launched attacks on Islamic State (Isis) targets in Iraq for the first time in strikes which the Ministry of Defence described as successful. It was the first time, after five missions, that the Tornados, based in Cyprus, have dropped bombs. “In the course of an armed reconnaissance mission from […]

Armed British warplanes are flying daily missions over Iraq and would launch air strikes if called in by local forces on the ground, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said Sunday. Royal Air Force Tornado GR4 combat jets have been flying from Britain’s RAF Akrotiri sovereign base on Cyprus loaded with Paveway IV laser-guided bombs. “They are […]