REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer

BERLIN (Reuters) - The German armed forces may not be able to use the Tornado fighter jet for NATO missions, according to a defence ministry report seen by Reuters. Of the 97 Tornados currently in service, only 10 meet NATO requirements; and these have already been assigned to the NATO Response Force, according to the document, which was released in February. The report, first cited by the German magazine Spiegel, says the Panavia Tornado, which first entered service in the 1970s, has several equipment flaws that make it vulnerable and no longer suitable for duty. Germany wants to start phasing out the Tornado jets in 2025 and the defence ministry has said that the Eurofighter Typhoon is the leading candidate, with Lockheed Martin’s F-35 and Boeing’s F-15 and F-18 fighters also options.
An unknown source supposedly leaks a report from the German defence ministry which suggests the nation's Tornado fighter jets may not meet NATO requirements for secure encrypted communications and are therefore potentially unsuitable for NATO missions.