Andy Flynn
Retired BAE Systems Eurofighter Project Director
I remember a moment in 2016 at the Royal International Air Tattoo. Our development aircraft, fitted with Meteor and Brimstone, displayed and won the prestigious Steedman Award against fearsome opposition. A photograph of the Typhoon as it flew down to the show was used in the UK Air Defence Strategy paper and is still seen in briefings to this day. That was a significant milestone — a clear sign that Typhoon had become the platform of choice for force commanders to deploy on operations. It really felt like we had come of age.
What I am most proud of is watching Typhoon move from being accepted onto Quick Reaction Alert to becoming the backbone of air defence across NATO and the Middle East. The narrative of the aircraft has really developed as it has put in the hours.
And I would say we are now in the Renaissance of the programme. Demand for the platform is as high as it was in the early 2000s. If I could bottle one thing that made this milestone possible, it would be the partnerships. The level of learning shared across the Eurofighter nations
over the years remains strong, even as people move into and out of roles. It has always been a great place to work on a significant defence programme.