Eurofighter Typhoon - Italian Eurofighter Typhoons Providing Air Cover for Turin Winter Olympics

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Following the commencement of operations in its Air Surveillance role with the Italian Air Force on December 16 2005, the Eurofighter Typhoon new generation combat aircraft has been tasked with providing airspace air defence coverage above Turin during the Winter Olympic Games over the next two weeks.

The Eurofighter Typhoon is already in operation as part of the Italian integrated air defence system from the main base of Grosseto, home of 4° Stormo. The Aeronautica Militare is the first air force in the world to operate the Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft in a real operational scenario. The new Italian Eurofighter Typhoons form part of an air defence structure which has already been tested during events such as the Genoa G8 summit, Pratica di Mare NATO-Russia summit, the burial ceremony for Pope John Paul II and the coming into seat of Pope Benedictus XVI. The Eurofighter Typhoon has all the capabilities demanded of a world-leading new generation swing role aircraft. It has a powerful radar of impressive range, target tracking, and electronic-counter-countermeasures (ECCM) capabilities, as well as modern, beyond-visual range (BVR) missiles. Eurofighter Typhoon also has tremendous maneuverability and dynamic flight characteristics. The aircraft impressive acceleration, climb, and a wide flight envelope give it a commanding advantage in close-in air-to-air encounters.