Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the defence minister, told her US counterpart that Germany was ready to buy 15 F-18 Growler jets

The German defence minister has angered her centre-left coalition partners by forging ahead with a plan to buy 45 US fighter jets, 30 of which will be fitted to carry American atom bombs.

Germany’s fleet of roughly 90 Tornado jets, the symbol of Berlin’s commitment to upholding the Nato nuclear umbrella, must be replaced from 2025. Yet Angela Merkel’s coalition is rancorously divided over the next generation of nuclear-capable aircraft.

The defence ministry, controlled by Mrs Merkel’s close ally Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, wants 90 Eurofighters from Airbus, the European aerospace giant, and 30 F-18 Super Hornets and 15 F-18 Growler jets from Boeing, its American rival. The left-wing Social Democratic party (SPD), however, is uncomfortable about spending so much on US hardware and its