Spain will replace F-18s with Eurofighters of the latest generation

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Spain will replace F-18s with Eurofighters of the latest generation

Spain has ordered 20 Eurofighter jets to replace the Spanish Air Force's ageing fleet of U.S.-made F-18 fighters. The new Eurofighter jet order is worth €2.04 billion. The contract was signed during the ILA Berlin Airshow by Carlo Mancusi, the CEO of Eurofighter and General Miguel Ángel Martín, director general of NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency (NETMA), and was witnessed by Secretary of State Amparo Valcarce, representing the Spanish Defence Ministry.

The contract calls for delivering the Halcon program consisting of an E-Scan (Electronically Scanned) radar-equipped fighter aircraft fleet. The program includes 16 single-seater and four twin-seater jets.

The Spanish Eurofighter fleet will grow to 89 aircraft due to this contract. Spain has already taken delivery of 73 aircraft, but four of them have crashed (in 2002, 2010, 2014 and 2017). It now has 69 left. These new aircraft will be delivered beginning in 2026.

The € 2.043 billion acquisition was approved by Spain's Council of Ministers on December 14, 2021, and included the aircraft, engines, a simulator, and the necessary support services.