Agreed. The F-35 was Turkey's first choice, but it was excluded in 2019 after buying S-400 SAMs from Russia. They're still talking to the Americans, but to some degree the Europeans were pushing at an open door here.
Of course they're not like-for-like: the F-35 is fifth-gen and the closest US comparison to the Typhoon is probably the F-16s - which also still sells well. I wonder whether the Russian threat will cause more European air forces to pad out their numbers i.e. buying more F-16s or Typhoons rather than the more expensive (and flawed) F-35.
Agreed. The F-35 was Turkey's first choice, but it was excluded in 2019 after buying S-400 SAMs from Russia. They're still talking to the Americans, but to some degree the Europeans were pushing at an open door here.
Of course they're not like-for-like: the F-35 is fifth-gen and the closest US comparison to the Typhoon is probably the F-16s - which also still sells well. I wonder whether the Russian threat will cause more European air forces to pad out their numbers i.e. buying more F-16s or Typhoons rather than the more expensive (and flawed) F-35.