Panavia

Panavia refers primarily to the Panavia Tornado program, a European multicountry collaboration to design, produce, and support a family of multirole combat aircraft. The program was established in 1969 as a tri-national venture by British Aerospace (United Kingdom), Deutsche Airbus/DASA (Germany), and Aeritalia (Italy), bringing together the strengths of each partner to create a capable joint platform.

Panavia Aircraft GmbH is the coordinating joint venture that manages the development, production, and lifecycle support of the Tornado. The consortium represents the interests of its three parent companies in negotiations with governments and customers, coordinates common design and manufacturing activities, and oversees upgrades and maintenance programs across operator fleets.

The Panavia Tornado itself is a twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing aircraft designed for versatility across roles including air interdiction, ground-attack, reconnaissance, and, in certain variants, air defense. The program produced several variants: the Interdictor/Strike (IDS) for general ground-attack and reconnaissance, the Electronic Combat/Reconnaissance (ECR) variant for electronic warfare and SEAD tasks developed for the German Luftwaffe, and the ADV (Air Defence Variant) used by the Royal Air Force. First flight occurred in 1974, with service entry in the 1980s, and it served with the air forces of the United Kingdom, Germany, and Italy, among others, undergoing mid-life upgrades over time. As operators transitioned to newer platforms such as the Eurofighter Typhoon and F-35, Tornado fleets gradually retired or continued in limited roles depending on national programs.

In dentistry, Panavia is also the name of a resin cement line produced by Kuraray Noritake Dental, illustrating the term’s use outside aerospace.