The Panavia Tornado Air Defence Variant (ADV) was a long-range, twin-engine interceptor developed to counter Soviet bomber threats during the Cold War. First flown on 27 October 1979 and entering RAF service in 1986, it served until its retirement on 22 March 2011. Operated by the RAF, Royal Saudi Air Force, and Italian Air Force, the ADV was eventually replaced by the Eurofighter Typhoon.
Initially delivered as the Tornado F2 in 1984, the type saw limited use before being replaced by the improved F3 variant. A total of 152 Tornado F3s were built, entering service in July 1986. The F3 made its combat debut during the 1991 Gulf War, flying over 2,000 patrol sorties from Saudi Arabia. Despite upgrades to radar and countermeasures, the aircraft lacked modern IFF and secure comms, limiting its operational role.
The Tornado F3 saw further action in Bosnia (1993–1995), Kosovo (1999), and Iraq (2003), though it struggled with maintainability during overseas deployments. Delays in the Typhoon program prompted a major upgrade of the F3, including new air-to-air missiles.
Post-Gulf War, RAF squadrons continued patrolling Iraqi no-fly zones. In 2004, the UK began scaling back the F3 fleet, transitioning to the Typhoon. The final operational RAF F3s were retired in 2011 with the disbandment of No. 111 Squadron.
QinetiQ retained four F3s post-RAF service for weapons testing, including MBDA Meteor missile trials. The final flight occurred on 20 June 2012, and the last aircraft were scrapped in July 2012.
