The pilot's joystick is not connected to the wings, but to four flight computers - each able to fly the aircraft on its own.Inside the cockpit, the technology is even more futuristic. Data is displayed on the cockpit canopy and a voice-activated system knows 200 commands - better than trying to push the correct button in a dogfight.Even more popular among the test pilots is the "look and shoot" helmet. This projects the radar picture on to the inside of the visor. Just by looking at the target, the pilot can lock the missile systems on it, and then fire by pressing a trigger key.But the civilian benefit of these science-fiction systems is a long way off. The Eurofighter is the most sophisticated aircraft now flying.It is designed for speed and if its engines failed, it could not glide; it is inherently unstable. Why is the Government putting so much support into a military project?" The quick answers are that it generates huge exports, employs about 160,000 people, and is an arena where Britain has a world lead.

The deal announced yesterday guarantees 14,000 British jobs. But as the Campaign Against The Arms Trade was quick to point out, that equates to pounds 1m per job, while the British civilian manufacturing industry is in a "critical state". Its joint co-ordinator, Will McMahon, said: "Civilian aircraft companies are crying out for Government support in a declining world market. Has the "military-industrial complex" reared its ugly head again in yesterday's pounds 16bn contract to buy 232 Eurofighters? President Dwight Eisenhower coined the phrase 40 years ago, warning Americans that a malign alliance between powerful armed forces and corporations threatened democracy. Cost over-runs on Eurofighter will only damage the rest of the defence budget.".

The Eurofighter is vital to meet the future requirements of our armed forces."While the Liberal Democrats joined the uncritical welcome, Mr Campbell added: "The industrial implications of this project are as significant as the military ones, but the Government must show a higher degree of financial control. Managers were "absolutely confident" that the first planes bound for the RAF would be in service in 2001.Though the UK is now apparently behind full-scale production, the Germans have yet to commit themselves to firm orders. The German parliament is due to vote on the project, which envisages 180 Eurofighters for Germany's air force, by the end of this year.But Michael Heseltine, the Deputy Prime Minister, who opened the air show and who helped to initiate the project in 1983, was confident that the Germans would give the Eurofighter their full backing.Mr Portillo said: "Today's announcement is excellent news for the Royal Air Force."It represents a crucial step forward towards providing them with a multi- role aircraft with the operational flexibility to respond to the uncertain challenges of the next century."The four-nation Eurofighter programme will ensure that the European aerospace industry remains at the forefront of technology."The Eurofighter will be assembled at British Aerospace sites in Lancashire while Rolls-Royce will manufacture the engines, primarily at Bristol and Derby.Dr David Clark, shadow secretary of state for defence, said: "For too long ministers have played politics with the jobs of our defence workers. "We want someone to come and attack us so you can really see what this aircraft can do."The project's official title, "Eurofighter 2000", had become something of a joke in the industry as the delivery date slipped towards 2005.British Aerospace, however, insisted that many of the complex computer software problems which have dogged the development have now been solved. "I have to say you really feel like a king in this," he said. "We think that's not a bad record for a programme of this complexity," he said.The single-seater Eurofighter made a dramatic debut at the show in front of hundreds of trade and press spectators yesterday.John Turner, the RAF test pilot, was ecstatic about the aircraft's capabilities.