Austria sues Airbus, Eurofighter consortium over suspected fraud

VIENNA, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Austria filed a lawsuit on Thursday against Airbus and the Eurofighter consortium, alleging them of wilful deception and fraud linked to a 2 billion euro ($2.1 billion) order for Eurofighter jets in 2003, the defence ministry said.

A recently completed ministry investigation found that Airbus and Eurofighter , with fraudulent intent, misled Austria about the purchase price, the deliverability and the equipment of the jets, the ministry said, confirming earlier media reports.

The damages incurred to Austria could amount to 1.1 billion euros, the findings said. (Reporting by Kirsti Knolle and Alexandra Schwarz-Goerlich; editing by Jason Neely)