Trailfinder,
You think that describing Typhoon as an achievement is funny, and then you ask "In what respect"? Its respects, old boy, plural.
1) Performance. (Including RCS, agility, supersonic agility, and weapons performance).
2) Capability (Already. The radar is f***ing amazing already - flipping, that is, of course).
3) Potential.
4) Cost and cost of ownership.
I can spell the word phenomenal, and I'm happy to use it!
Europe has produced arguably the best combat aircraft of its generation. Only the F-22 promises to be better (do you think that the F-22 or F-35 programmes have somehow been any less trouble prone? If you do it can only be through ignorance.)
"The chief of staff of the US Air Force, General John P. Jumper, praised the Eurofighter Typhoon after a test flight in the much-maligned jet, which has been in service just 11 weeks with the German Air Force.
"I've flown all the air force jets. None was as good as the Eurofighter," he said, according to an account by the German Air Force of his Tuesday try-out of one of the two-seater jets based at Laage Air Force Base near the Baltic coast city of Rostock.
The general praised the jet fighter for its agility, manoeuvrability, acceleration and precise navigation."
Or:
Lt. Gen. Bruce A. Carlson, a former USAF director of operational requirements who said that "Typhoon will easily outstrip the capabilities of the Su-35 /-37, as well as the F-15, and ..... is considered second only to the F-22 in capability. Typhoon is more maneuverable and has better radar detection capability than the F-15 and is harder to detect on radar."
Or:
March 2004
Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, UK Chief of Air Staff
“I have been looking forward to it for a long time and it was hugely impressive – if I had a message for RAF personnel it would be ‘if you can get on Typhoon – get on it!’”
“We have a lot of work to do as we bring this weapons system into service, and those involved in the programme should be proud of their contribution. We now need to keep it going, because I have no doubt that if we get this right, this aircraft is a world beater.”
Or:
14th May 2004
Air Chief Marshal Sir Brian Burridge KCB CBE RAF
“The performance of the aircraft was stunning. The radar is nice as is the display. The aircraft is at the beginning of its life, there is a lot to do to turn it into a combat aircraft, but it’s great to fly”
Or:
4th June 2004
Air Marshal Glenn Torpy, DCinC STC
“This is the performance we’ve hoped for for many years, the aircraft’s getting off to a really good start with Case White and it’s looking hopeful for the future. Typhoon is a great pilot’s aircraft”.
Or:
Sqn Ldr Dicky Patounas, who will take command of the Red Arrows next season, took his first flight in Typhoon on Wednesday 19 June, before joining the Red Arrows to flypast RAF Cranwell in celebration of the beginning of the Red Arrow's 20th season. He took off from Warton with Wg Cdr David Chan, OC 17 (R) Sqn, and on his return commented:
"It is an excellent aircraft. It flies beautifully. It has a huge amount of power allied with superb handling and agility. I was pleasantly surprised with the feedback the aircraft gave me. I was expecting a 'sterile feeling' machine however, this was not the case at all. With the Typhoon you can tell exactly what is going on with the airframe. These characteristics combined with the sensors we are going to receive, will make the Typhoon a first class weapons system."
You're probably one of the ill-informed twits who still think that the radar is having problems, based on Foxhunter-fed prejudice and old, long out of date reports from early development work during the last century.