Saab begins Arexis EW deliveries to Airbus for German Eurofighter Typhoons
“This [Arexis] is part of [the] Eurofighter program and Germany is now funding it, but any other Eurofighter customer, of course, could benefit from having it on board,” Mikael Corp, sales director of fighter electronic warfare at Saab, told Breaking Defense.
Saab’s Arexis EW sensor on display at the Association of Old Crows Europe trade show (Breaking Defense)
AOC EUROPE 2025 — Swedish manufacturer Saab has started deliveries of the company’s Arexis Electronic Warfare (EW) sensor suite to Airbus, ahead of the planned integration of the equipment on German Air Force Eurofighter Typhoons.
In line with a contract signed last year to supply Airbus with 15 of the systems marketed as “invisible wingman,” Saab’s Mikael Corp told Breaking Defense, “We’ve been making deliveries to Airbus, and the program is working really well.” Corp, sales director of fighter electronic warfare, did not disclose exact delivery numbers.
The German Air Force plans on introducing the new Eurofighter EK (Electronic Combat) jets, designed to support escort jamming missions, from 2030 onward as a replacement for Tornado ECR (Electronic Combat/Reconnaissance) aircraft. Arexis was originally selected by Berlin for the electronic attack requirement in 2023, and it is the “default configuration” for Swedish Air Force Gripen E/F jets, added Corp.
As part of a pending Strategic Defense Review, the United Kingdom (UK) is also expected to decide on an additional order for Eurofighter Typhoons or more Lockheed Martin F-35 fifth generation fighter jets — a critical decision that could, in theory at least, bring about new Arexis business.
“I know there’s a big discussion in the UK at the moment, if there should be more F- 35 [or] should it be more Typhoons or a mix?” Corp said here in Rome at an Association of Old Crows conference dedicated to electronic warfare. “This will work perfectly on the UK Typhoons as well,” if the new order was to go ahead.
On the prospect of the other Eurofighter Typhoon home nations, Italy and Spain, acquiring Arexis in the future, he said that the countries would first have to talk with the NATO Eurofighter & Tornado Management Agency (NETMA) — a contracting authority — before any industry activity could take place.
“This [Arexis] is part of [the] Eurofighter program, and Germany is now funding it, but any other Eurofighter customer, of course, could benefit from having it on board,” added Corp.
Broadly speaking Arexis pods are primarily designed to jam enemy radars, in combination with a strike package. In the German Air Force case, as an example, the EK jets will be armed with Northrop Grumman made AGM-88E2 Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missiles (AARGM).
Corp said that dependent on customer requirements, Saab would be able to tailor the number of antennas within the pod — a key decision for survivability and self protection — because users typically weigh how they will handle the processing of large quantities of EW-based information.
“If you don’t need full bandwidth, maybe you’re more interested in a more narrow bandwidth, of course, we can make a little bit simpler solution. This is very scalable,” he explained.
