The Panavia Tornado was a joint effort between the UK, West Germany and Italy to produce a two-seat, dual-engine aircraft with variable-sweep wings. The Tornado took its maiden flight on August 14, 1974 with the first aircraft being delivered to the German Air Force on July 27, 1979. There are three main variants of the Tornado, the IDS (interdictor/strike), ECR (electronic combat/reconnaissance) and ADV (air defense variant) interceptor. By the end of production in 1998 there had been 992 aircraft of all versions built of which 745 were IDS variants.
The Marineflieger received 122 Tornado IDS to replace the F-104 for anti-shipping and reconnaissance. Marineflieger MFG 2 operated from Eggebek between 1986 and 2005 when it was disbanded and all aircraft and duties were ceded to the Luftwaffe. For reconnaissance missions a pod with panoramic optical cameras and an IR line scan were attached to the fuselage center-line. Starting in 1993 MFG 2 was comprised of 3 squadrons, 1st, 2nd and 3rd. The first two were operational squadrons while the 3rd looked after training pilots and WSOs.
General specifications for the Panavia Tornado IDS Country of origin – Italy, UK, West Germany
Service entry date – 1979
Crew – 2
Dimensions
Length – 17.72 m (58.1 ft) Wingspan – 13.92 m (45.7 ft) expanded 8.6m swept (28.2 ft) Height – 5.95m (19.5 ft) Weight Empty – 13.8 t (30,423 lb) Maximum take off – 27.9 t (61,508.9 lb)
Performance
Powerplant 2 X Turbo-Union RB.199 Mk. 103 turbofans Producing dry with afterburners 2 X 38.48 / 71.50 kN Maximum speed – 2,236 km/h (1,389 mph) Service ceiling – 15.2 km (49,868.77 ft) Range – 1,390 km (863.7 miles) Ferry range with drop tanks – 3,900 (2,423.3) – 4,300 km (2,671.9 miles)
Armament
Cannon – 2 X 27 mm IWKA-Mauser Storm Shadow air-launched cruise missiles Brimstone anti-tank guided missiles 454 kg free-fall bombs CPU-123/B Paveway II GBU-28 Paveway III laser-guided bombs
Description