So a memorandum of agreement was drafted between Britain, West Germany, and Italy (and Holland, but they later dropped out) in May 1969 to create a multi-role aircraft called the MRCA ( Multi Role Combat Aircraft) under the German banner of Panavia Aircraft GmbH. So Australia soldered on as the only F111 foreign purchaser and it was almost a decade before they mastered all the problems and in the long run the F-111 was not overall a very effective or efficient military machine, the many that survived here in Australia cost millions per year to keep in the air.įor the German's and Italian's they were in the same frame of mind in their requirements to replace their ageing Lockheed F-104 Starfighters. To cover the F-111's waiting period the American provided F4 Phantoms as they did in Australia as to also the RAF, but eventually as the F-111 was still years from service and the British government decided that their own swing-wing aircraft to suit their own and European needs was now the better quicker route to follow than more costly waiting and so the F-111 order was cancelled.

So an order for the F-111 was granted, but swing wing design was a seriously complex and a hard engineering design to overcome and the F-111 fell behind in with it's multiple problems. The trend in the mid-sixties was towards variable-geometry wing designs to gain the manoeuvrability and efficient cruise of straight wings to be combined with the high mach speeds of swept wing designs, and the leading design of the period was the American F-111K. Aircraft Review : Panavia Tornado GR4 by X-TridentĪfter the cancellation of the United Kingdom's BAC TSR-2 project in 1965 the country was put in limbo in finding a multi-role aircraft to replace the many different types of aircraft already in service in many different roles, but to also cover their advancing tactical strike/reconnaissance capability but with the added capability to fill another role as a light bomber to replace the current V Bombers.

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