Eurofighter Typhoon DA2

DA2 was built by BAE at Warton and first flew on 6 April 1994 with Christopher J. Yeo at the controls. Like DA1 it completed nine flights by June 1994 before being grounded for the Phase 2 flight control system update; flying resumed on 17 May 1995, and on 9 November that year Squadron Leader Simon Dyde became the first RAF pilot to fly the type. In May 1997 the aircraft demonstrated controlled flight at angles of attack of up to 25 degrees. Trials at RAF Leeming followed, including hardened shelter compatibility checks, radar jamming tests and the start of the carefree handling campaign. On 23 December 1997 DA2 became the first Eurofighter Typhoon to reach Mach 2, and on 14 January 1998 it made its first air-to-air refuelling from a VC10. It was then fitted with EJ200 engines, new avionics and the Martin-Baker Mk.16 seat, returning to flight in late August 1998 with flutter testing. It was equipped for loads testing from mid-1999, and on 7 July 2000 it flew the 2B2 software standard for the first time, wearing an all-black finish carrying more than five hundred pressure sensors for airflow measurement. The fuel system was updated at the end of that year. In-flight engine relights were tested during 2001, and in January 2002 DA2 and DA4 performed the first double air-to-air refuelling. ASRAAM compatibility trials followed, carefree handling development was completed in mid-2002, and DASS testing and the automatic low-speed recovery campaign closed in July 2004. The first flight with the new flight control software took place in February 2005, with testing continuing until 13 November 2006. DA2 was retired on 29 January 2007 and is preserved at the RAF Museum in Hendon.