The Qatar Emiri Air Force officially became on Monday 15 August 2022 the first air force to use the two major European-made fighter aircraft. It took delivery of its first Eurofighter EF-2000 Typhoon in Great Britain. It is the first of a series of 24 multi-role fighters to be assembled at BAE Systems. The aircraft will arrive in Qatar in the next few days.

Although the Qatar Emiri Air Force has never made it clear, it is now no longer a mystery that the European-designed fighters will be used primarily as air superiority and interceptor aircraft. The multi-role fighter functions are therefore rather reserved for the Boeing F-15QA Qatar Eagle of American origin and the Dassault Aviation Rafale F3-R of French manufacture.

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Qatar plans to use its Typhoon Tranche 3 aircraft to protect its sovereign airspace during the football World Cup in a few weeks’ time. The QEAF is likely to field five of these new generation aircraft.

It is interesting to note that in the images provided by BAE Systems it is clear that this first Eurofighter EF-2000 Typhoon retains the two tactical code scheme. The QA404 on the underside of the cockpit and on top of the tail is a reminder that the aircraft is Qatari, while the ZR505 is clearly British. The aircraft will therefore fly for a few days in the UK before going to the Gulf emirate. This is nothing new, as it has been used since last September on the BAE Systems Hawk Mk-167, also from Qatar. Obviously the former British protectorate has not completely cut the umbilical cord with Great Britain and its customs.

These training jets have been designed to train Qatari pilots to fly the Typhoon Tranche 3. The future F-15QA Qatar Eagle and Rafale F3-R pilots are learning on the Italian-made Alenia Aermacchi M-346 Master.

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