Specifications compared
| Variant compared | Tornado GR4 (IDS) | Jaguar GR1 |
|---|---|---|
| First flight | 14 Aug 1974 (type) | 8 Sep 1968 (type) |
| Entered service | 1979–80 (type) | 1974 (RAF) |
| Max speed | Mach 2.2 at 9,000 m with working intake ramps; lower on most IDS | Mach 1.1 (1,350 km/h) at sea level |
| Engine | 2 × Turbo-Union RB199-34R Mk 103, 43.8 kN dry / 76.8 kN reheat | 2 × Rolls-Royce Turbomeca Adour Mk 102, 5,110 lbf dry / 7,300 lbf reheat |
| Armament | 1 × 27 mm Mauser BK-27 (2 in GR1); 9,000 kg on 7 pylons | 2 × 30 mm ADEN cannon (RAF); 10,000 lb on 7 hardpoints |
| Number built | 990 (all versions) | 573 |
| Crew | 2 | 1 (2 in T2 trainer) |
Two European partnerships
The Jaguar came from SEPECAT, a joint company of Breguet and the British Aircraft Corporation. It began in the 1960s as a jet trainer with light attack ability. The requirement grew to include supersonic speed, reconnaissance and nuclear strike.
The Tornado came from Panavia, formed by Britain, West Germany and Italy. Britain and Germany each took 42.5% of the work and Italy 15%. It used a variable-sweep wing and fly-by-wire controls.
The Jaguar flew on 8 September 1968, and the Tornado on 14 August 1974.
In RAF service
The RAF took 165 single-seat Jaguar GR1s and 35 two-seat T2s from 1974. They flew attack, reconnaissance and nuclear strike, mostly from bases in Germany and at Coltishall.
From the mid-1980s Tornado GR1s replaced several RAF Germany Jaguar squadrons. The Tornado's variable-sweep wing cut drag in the low-level dash. Its navigation computers eased the crew's workload at low level.
The Tornado ADV, later the F3, was a separate interceptor version. The RAF flew it in the air defence role alongside the GR strike versions.
The Gulf War and after
In 1991 RAF Tornados flew many low-level penetrating strikes. Jaguars proved mechanically reliable, though their avionics were dated. They gained new weapons for the war, including CRV7 rockets and American cluster bombs.
The RAF retired the Jaguar at the end of April 2007. Tornados went on to fly over Kosovo, Iraq and Syria before retiring on 1 April 2019.
Between 2014 and 2019, RAF Tornados flew against Islamic State over Iraq and Syria.
The record and a myth
Panavia built 990 Tornados, including 194 ADV interceptors. SEPECAT and India's HAL built 573 Jaguars, and India still flies them.
The Jaguar also carried Britain's tactical nuclear weapons. It could take two WE177 bombs.
The Tornado is often listed at Mach 2.2. That figure needs working variable intake ramps, which were inhibited on most strike Tornados. In practice the GR4 was a low-level aircraft.
Where to see a Tornado and a Jaguar
Twelve gazetteer museums hold both, including the Royal Air Force Museum London, Yorkshire Air Museum and South Wales Aviation Museum. Montrose Air Station Museum pairs a Jaguar GR1 with Tornado GR4 ZD744, which flew over Iraq in 2014.
| Museum | Adult entry | Airframes | Headline exhibit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boscombe Down Aviation CollectionSalisbury, Wiltshire | £13.50 | 49 | The Lancaster cockpit reproduction tour, and a test-and-evaluation pedigree collection you can physically inhabit rather than admire… |
| Montrose Air Station MuseumMontrose, Angus | £10 | 14 | The 1913 fabric itself, plus the resident ghost stories (Montrose is Britain's most famously haunted airfield, a claim the volunteers… |
| National Museum Of FlightNorth Berwick, East Lothian | £15 | 47 | Concorde G-BOAA, which flew British Airways' first commercial supersonic service in 1976 and arrived here by barge and giant road-crawl… |
| RAF Air Defence Radar MuseumNorwich, Norfolk | £14 | 3 | The original 1942 Ground Controlled Interception room and its Cold War successor: Britain's actual air-defence nervous system, in situ,… |
| RAF Manston History MuseumRamsgate, Kent | £7 | 22 | RAF Manston's history museum spans 1916 RNAS days to Cold War Meteors, with strong 1940s room-sets — and it sits next door to the… |
| Royal Air Force Museum LondonLondon, Greater London | Free | 88 | Avro Lancaster R5868 'S-Sugar' — 137 operations, the RAF's highest-scoring surviving heavy — under the same roof as a Vulcan, a… |
| Royal Air Force Museum MidlandsShifnal, Shropshire | Free | 78 | TSR-2 XR220, one of two survivors of the most gifted aircraft Britain ever cancelled, sharing floor space with the stainless-steel… |
| Solway Aviation MuseumCrosby on Eden, Cumbria | £8 | 21 | Vulcan XJ823 with pre-bookable crew-compartment visits; a Phantom, Lightning and Canberra (whose three-crew cockpit reviewers describe as… |
| South Wales Aviation MuseumBarry, Vale of Glamorgan | £10 | 73 | The resident Harrier and a growing VC10/Tornado-era collection, most with steps and open canopies. Kids exit wearing thousand-yard grins. |
| South Yorkshire Aircraft MuseumDoncaster, South Yorkshire | £7.50 | 109 | Doncaster's South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum sprawls across the old RAF Doncaster site: dozens of airframes and helicopters, strong… |
| Ulster Aviation Society (Maze Long Kesh)Lisburn, County Antrim | By appointment | 63 | The Shorts family — SC.1 vertical take-off research aircraft included — plus a Buccaneer, Phantom, Wildcat, and a newly arrived AV-8… |
| Yorkshire Air MuseumYork, North Yorkshire | £17 | 54 | Halifax 'Friday the 13th' — the world's only complete Halifax reconstruction, honouring the type that flew from this very field —… |
Frequently asked
Was the Tornado faster than the Jaguar?
Yes, in principle: Mach 2.2 at height against about Mach 1.1 at sea level. But most strike Tornados had their variable intake ramps inhibited, and both flew mainly at low level.
When did the RAF retire the Jaguar and the Tornado?
The Jaguar at the end of April 2007, and the Tornado GR4 on 1 April 2019.
Where can I see a Tornado and a Jaguar together?
At twelve gazetteer museums, including the Royal Air Force Museum London, Yorkshire Air Museum and the National Museum Of Flight.