Panavia Tornado

The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine fighters, which was jointly developed by the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy. There are three primary versions of the Tornado, the fighter-bomber Tornado IDS (Interdictor/Strike), the interceptor Tornado ADV (Air Defence Variant), and the suppression of enemy air defences Tornado ECR (Electronic Combat/Reconnaissance).

Developed and built by Panavia, a trination consortium consisting of British Aerospace (then the British Aircraft Corporation), MBB of Germany, and Alenia Aeronautica of Italy, the Tornado first flew on August 14, 1974, and saw action with the RAF and AMI (Italian Air Force) in Operation Granby / Gulf War. International co-operation continued after its entry into service within the Tri-National Tornado Training Establishment, a tri-nation training and evaluation unit operating from RAF Cottesmore in Rutland in the English Midlands. Including all variants, 992 aircraft were built for the three partner nations and Saudi Arabia. Though still in service, It is in the process of being replaced by the Eurofighter Typhoon in the air defence role.