THE UK has agreed to purchase Storm Shadow cruise missiles at a cost of £120 million, according to an announcement made by the Defence Secretary Philip Dunne at Farnborough International Airshow. Storm Shadow, which provides long-range air-to-surface capabilities and is capable of defeating various targets, including bridges, airfields, harbours and parked aircraft, will be integrated onto RAF Typhoons. The agreement, announced on July 17, was signed between the NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency, on behalf of the partner nations, and Eurofighter GmbH. The missiles, produced by MBDA, have previously been deployed on Tornado GR4 aircraft during operations over Iraq and Libya. These will now be fitted onto Typhoon Tranche 2 and 3 aircraft, ready to enter operational service with the RAF in 2018. The first Typhoon/Storm Shadow integration trials began lastyear. I nitial flight trials to demonstrate that the missile can be safely carried on Typhoon began on November 27. They are taking place at the Alenia Aermacchi Flight Test Centre at Decimomannu Air Base in Sardinia, Italy, usingtrials Typhoon MM.X614 (Instrumented Production Aircraft 2-IPA2), which has been updated to the Phase 1 Enhancement standard. Storm Shadow is due to be added to the Typhoon's arsenal as part of the aircraft's Phase 2 Enhancement (P2E) programme, which introduces several new combat capabilities. Although integration testing is well underway, it is could be another year before deliveries to the RAF begin.
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