Royal Air Force Typhoons to fly defensive missions over Saudi Arabia
London has committed several Typhoons, along with an A330 Voyager tanker and A400M transport, in support of Riyadh.
The UK is stepping up its operational support to Saudi Arabia, with London committing some of its Eurofighter Typhoons to conducting defensive missions for Riyadh.
Announced on 20 October, the expanded commitment follows an earlier agreement to make one of the Royal Air Force’s (RAF’s) Airbus Defence & Space A330 Voyager tankers available to support Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) assets. The UK had also already deployed “air defence equipment to protect against missiles and drone attacks”.
“The UK will fly defensive counter-air missions to support the protection of Saudi cities and critical national infrastructure against aerial attack,” the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) says. “These [Typhoon] aircraft will not conduct offensive strikes against the Houthis,” it adds.
In addition to providing an undisclosed number of its multirole fighters, London confirms that it will “provide an RAF A400M to support the movement of defence materiel within Saudi Arabia”. The UK service has a 22-strong fleet of the tactical transport, which has a cargo capacity of 37t.
The UK says its expanded arrangement “also includes an extension of air-to-air refuelling support for Saudi defensive air operations including to degrade Houthi military targets in Yemen that threaten the Saudi and Yemeni people”.
Airport attacks
“The Houthis’ attempts to destabilise the region and undermine the security and stability of the Middle East are unacceptable,” the MoD says, while adding: “We unequivocally condemn the Houthi attacks on civilian targets like King Khalid International airport.”
An attack staged against Riyadh’s main airport killed 12 civilians and injured more than 300 others on 10 October, with the same site and Dammam’s King Fahd airport also attacked the following day. Commercial operations at airports in the kingdom remain suspended as a result of the strikes.
“Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Yemen have the right to defend themselves,” London says, with defence secretary Wes Streeting noting, “The targeting of the airport in Riyadh in particular shows the lengths the Houthis are going to [to] escalate the situation in the region.”
Data from aviation analytics company Cirium shows that the RSAF has a combat aircraft inventory with a combined 363 Boeing F-15s, Panavia Tornados and Typhoons, while the RAF operates just over 100 Typhoons and 47 Lockheed Martin F-35Bs.
Notably, the RAF earlier this year began operating Typhoons deployed to its Akrotiri base in Cyprus with BAE Systems’ Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) laser-guided rockets for use against threats such as one-way attack drones.
In September, Saudi Arabia was cleared by Washington to purchase 48 Lockheed Martin F-35A stealth fighters, although a sale has not yet been finalised and it will be years before any aircraft are ready for RSAF service.
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