Britain has not discussed handing over Eurofighter Typhoon Tranche 1 fighters to Poland to replace MiG-29s that will fly to Ukraine

By: Maksim Panasovskiy | 02.04.2023, 13:33
Britain has not discussed handing over Eurofighter Typhoon Tranche 1 fighters to Poland to replace MiG-29s that will fly to Ukraine

In the middle of last month, Poland approved sending MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine. Later it was reported that Warsaw might receive European Eurofighter Typhoons from the UK instead. But this issue has not been discussed yet.

Here's What We Know

Poland has 30 Soviet MiG-29 fighters in service. They recently took part in a NATO exercise in which they successfully exchanged data with fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II planes.

Warsaw plans to send some of its fighters to Ukraine and hopes that NATO allies will give it surplus aircraft in return. In particular, it is about the Eurofighter Typhoon of the British Royal Air Force.

The information came to light thanks to a question posed by Kevan Jones, MP for the North Durham Labour Party. He asked whether the UK Ministry of Defence had discussed the potential shipment of Eurofighter Typhoon Tranche 1 fighters to Poland. Defence spokesman James Heappey replied that the issue had not yet been raised.

Britain welcomes Poland's decision to provide the Ukrainian Air Force with Soviet-era MiG-29 jets. The UK is considering ways to support Poland, but there have been no talks yet on the transfer of the Eurofighter Typhoon.

The Typhoon fighters have production batches called Tranche and are divided by upgrades. The Royal Air Force has 30 Tranche 1s in service and is due to retire in 2025.

Source: UKDJ