Britain will push ahead with a multi-billion pound deal to buy US fighter jets in defiance of European warnings that President Trump could disable the aircraft. Ministers are set to confirm the purchase of F-35 Lightnings instead of “expensive” Eurofighter Typhoons. The US has denied the existence of a “kill switch” on the F-35 after panic swept Europe that Trump could ground the fifth-generation fighters on a whim. Those fears were exacerbated when Trump said he would “tone down” the F-47, a new model of US aircraft, by “about 10 per cent” before selling the planes to allies. The Unite union said the UK could find itself in a situation where President Trump “wakes up in a bad mood” and prevents the fighter jets being used YURI GRIPAS/EPAUnite, one of Britain’s largest unions, has urged the government to buy two squadrons of Typhoons, manufactured in

Source: The Times March 30, 2025 19:46 UTC