Introduction
Airbus Military, a business unit of Airbus is responsible for all military transport aircraft derivatives, including the Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT). Airbus is an EADS company.

Through various companies now part of the EADS such as Aérospatiale, British Aerospace Airbus (Filton), CASA/EADS MTA and EFW, Airbus Military builds on more than 35 years of experience in the development of tanker/transport solutions offering versatile, low risk, and cost-effective quality products.

2010 marks the 10th anniversary of the contract signature of the first MRTT derived from an Airbus platform: the conversion of four A310-300s into A310 MRTTs for the German Air Force contracted on 15 December 2000.

This is also the year when the most capable new generation tanker/transport aircraft, the A330 MRTT, is to be delivered to its launch customer, the Royal Australian Air Force.
C-160NG Transall, first steps towards an Airbus Military tanker
Originally developed as a replacement for the Nord 2501 Noratlas, the Franco-German C-160 Transall tactical transport aircraft made its first flight on 25 February 1963.

In May 1976, Aérospatiale, MBB and VFW decided to re-launch the C-160 Transall with a new generation version with AAR capabilities to satisfy the French Air Force’s growing needs for such assets.

Out of the 25 C-160NGs ordered by the French Government in July 1977, 15 can be fitted with a Sargent-Fletcher FR-300J Hose and Drogue Unit located in the port sponson. The one tonne Air-to-Air Refuelling kit can be installed in three days. Of the 15 C-160NGs with tanking provisions, 10 are permanently equipped as tankers.


The C-160NG made its first flight on 9 April 1981 and the first delivery to the French Air Force occurred few months later.

The C-160NG Transall tankers have been mainly used in operations in Africa where their tactical capabilities proved to be very useful in the regions where the C-135FRs could not land.

This tactical air-to-air refuelling capability will be soon renewed in the French Air Force with the new Airbus Military A400M fitted with a pair of Cobham hose and drogue under-wing pods.
VC10, the first venture into a tanker
conversion process for Airbus Military
While France and Germany were developing a new version of the Transall with AAR capabilities, the Royal Air Force announced in 1978 its intention to acquire at least nine VC10s in a dedicated tanker version to replace its fleet of tankers based on converted “V bombers” (Valiants, Victors and Vulcans).

Although the RAF had been operating 14 VC10 C1swithin 10 Squadron since 1966, it was decided that the nine tankers would be former East African Airways(Super VC10 Type 1154s becoming K3s) and Gulf Air(Type 1101s becoming K2s) aircraft. The nine former commercial aircraft were sold to the RAF and the contract to convert them into tankers was awarded to British Aerospace Airbus Division in Filton (now Airbus Operations Limited).

The configuration for the VC10 K2 consisted of three refuelling points (two Flight Refuelling Mk.32 under-wing pods and a Flight Refuelling Mk.17B fuselage Hose and Drogue Unit), a passenger capability and five additional fuel tanks totalling a 77 tonnes (170 000 lb) fuel capacity. The VC10 K3s were fitted with five additional fuel tanks in the cabin totalling an 82 tonnes (181 000 lb) fuel capacity and a forward port cargo door. The conversion took place in the huge Brabazon hangar at today’s Airbus Operations Limited facilities in Filton near Bristol in England.
The first VC10 K2 (ZA141) made its first flight on 22 June 1982 with British Aerospace pilots Roy Radford and John Lewis. In May 1987 the last K3 of the program was delivered to 101 Squadron.

In early 1981, the RAF bought the last 14 Super VC10s from British Airways which had just retired them from active service. Five of these aircraft were converted into VC10 K4s by British Aerospace Airbus in Filton.

The configuration is similar to the previous versions but without the additional fuel tanks in the cabin.

The “C1” was the first VC10 type in service with the RAF but the last one to be converted into a tanker. The conversion programme for the remaining 13 RAF airframes was part of the contract for the K4s and was initiated in the early nineties. The contract was awarded to FR Aviation at Bournemouth, under subcontract to British Aerospace Airbus. Of the three programmes this was the least extensive conversion, as only two wing refuelling points were added to the airframes.

The VC10 K2s were withdrawn from service in 2000, but the remaining VC10 K3/K4/C1Ks are due to be replaced from 2011 by 14 Airbus Military A330 FSTAs.
A310 MRTT, the first new generation tanker/transport aircraft
To give the Luftwaffe an air-to-air refuelling capability, the German Bundestag budget committee approved the conversion of four A310 MRTs into MRTTs (Multi Role Transport Tankers) on 6 December 2000.

The Basisvertrag (basic contract) for the Tanker Standard Kit was signed on 15 December 2000 by the Bundesamt für Wehrtechnik und Beschaffung (German Federal Office of Defence Technology and Procurement), Lufthansa Technik and Airbus Deutschland. This tanker kit developed and manufactured by CASA/EADS MTA includes:

• Four Additional Centre Tanks (ACTs), each holding 5700 kg
   (12 600 lb).
• A pair of Cobham 907E under-wing hose and drogue refuelling pods.
• A Fuel Operator Station (FOS) with seats for the Air Refuelling
  Operator and an observer.
• Fuel system modifications.
• Tanker illumination system.
• Receiver Surveillance System (RSS).
• Wing vortex generators.



The conversion of the first MRT into MRTT started in the autumn of 2002 at EFW.

Another A310 operator, Canada’s Air Force, showed interest in converting two of its five CC-150 Polaris (local designation of the A310-300) strategic transport aircraft, in service since 1991. In order to recover its air-to-air refuelling capabilities lost in 1997 when the two Boeing 707/CC-137 tankers were withdrawn from service, on 16 October 2002, the Canadian Minister of National Defence announced a project to modify two CC-150 Polaris aircraft with AAR refuelling kits. John McCallum signed a contract with the Airbus Deutschland/Lufthansa Technik consortium for work to start in the fall of 2003.

Successfully delivered in 2004, the German A310 MRTTs and Canadian CC-150T Polaris are regularly involved in fighter deployments, troop rotations, medical evacuations and humanitarian/natural disaster relief operations all over the world.
ARBS, the most capable new generation aerial refuelling boom system
As air-to-air refuelling by boom was an American monopoly, Aérospatiale and Intertechnique started to study such systems in 1995 in order to be able to refuel receptacle-equipped receivers such as the F-16 or F-15, which would boost the development of Airbus military derivatives.

In 2000 the then EADS MTA – today’s Airbus Military assumed responsibility within EADS for all Airbus military transport aircraft derivatives and launched its own study for a boom system in November 2001.

Many of the features of the previous development were selected. However, EADS MTA introduced new technologies, such as electrical actuators, a hoist, flight controls, a high resolution digital vision system and new capabilities such as a 1200 US gallons per minute fuel flow rate, dual redundancy and envelope protection.

In order to carry out all types of development and qualification tests on the boom system before installing it on an aircraft, a full scale Boom Test Rig was built in the Madrid-Getafe factory in 2004.

The whole flight test programme phase was performed with the company’s own aircraft, an ex-Austrian Airlines A310-300 dubbed “Boom Demonstrator” fitted with the Aerial Refuelling Boom System (ARBS) which made its first flight on 16 March 2006.


On 30 March 2006 the first phase of the ARBS flight test programme was successfully completed after three years of development. The A310 Boom Demonstrator aircraft performed on 30 January 2007 its twelfth test flight and the boom was successfully deployed for the first time.

The first dry contact between the A310 Boom Demonstrator and a Portuguese F-16 through the ARBS occurred on 10 December 2007. Other dry contacts were conducted with a French Air Force E-3F AWACS in July 2008. The first wet contact was carried out with an F-16 on 4 March 2008.

The first dry contact between the ARBS fitted on the A310 Boom Demonstrator and the UARRSI of the first A330 MRTT of the Royal Australian Air Force were conducted in January 2009.

The first night refuelling was made in July 2009 between the A310 Boom Demonstrator and a Portuguese F-16.

The test and evaluation programme using the A310 Boom Demonstrator was successfully completed after 173 contacts with the KC-30A (RAAF A330 MRTT), 220 with F-16As and five with an E-3F AWACS.

The ARBS is part of the RAAF KC-30A which conducted its first refuelling with a receptacle equipped receiver (an F-16) on 21 October 2009.

More about the Aerial Refuelling Boom System (ARBS)
A330 MRTT, the benchmark for the 21st century is born
Although the A310 MRTT was the first tanker marketed by Airbus, a joint study was launched in parallel to identify the best platform to succeed the KC-135 tankers.

It was concluded that the maximum takeoff weight had to be at least 190 tonnes (418 900 lb) and the A330-200 with 233 tonnes (514 000 lb) was by far the ideal aircraft to be converted into a Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT). Furthermore, the A330-200 wing is large enough to hold all the fuel needed to make the A330 MRTT a high performing tanker without impairing whatsoever the fuselage capacity to carry passengers and/or cargo (no additional fuel tanks are needed).

The advantages of the A330 MRTT have been confirmed by the Commonwealth of Australia, who signed in December 2004 a contract with EADS for five KC-30A MRTTs (local name of the A330 MRTT).

In January 2008, the Royal Saudi Air Force ordered three A330 MRTTs. In February 2008, the United Arab Emirates ordered three A330 MRTTs. Saudi was also the first customer to place a repeat order for another three in 2009. In March 2008, fourteen A330 FSTAs were ordered by AirTanker to supply the Royal Air Force with a tanking service. Total orders for the A330 MRTT currently stand at 28.

A400M, the versatile airlifter
Conceived in the mid 1990s and launched in May 2003, the A400M was designed to respond to the combined but varying needs of European nations in terms of airlift in today’s and tomorrow’s world. Being able to perform both tactical and strategic/logistic missions, to fly fast or slow at high or low altitudes, the A400M is the ideal airlifter to fulfil the most varied requirements of any nation around the globe in terms of military and humanitarian missions in the 21st Century.

A total of 184 aircraft have so far been ordered by Belgium (7), France (50), Germany (60), Luxembourg (1), Malaysia (4), Spain (27), Turkey (10) and the United Kingdom (25). All the A400M have the provisions for AAR kits.

On 11 December 2009, the first Airbus Military A400M successfully completed its maiden flight lasting 3h47min following its take-off at 10:15 local time.

Designed from the outset to be a dual-role transport and tanker aircraft, the A400M provides air forces with a cost-effective air-to-air refuelling (AAR) capability in addition to logistic and tactical airlift.



The basic A400M has much of the equipment for AAR operations already installed as standard, including the hard points, fuel lines and electric connections for two wing-mounted fuel dispensing pods. To enable AAR, the standard A400M aircraft can be quickly fitted with the following optional equipment:

• Two hose and drogue under-wing refuelling pods
• A pallet-mounted centre-line Hose and Drum Unit (HDU)
• Three video cameras for monitoring refuelling
• One or two Cargo Hold Tanks (CHT).

The A400M’s strength as a tanker lies in its ability to undertake AAR at both high and low speeds and at high and low altitudes. Thus it is able to refuel fast jets at their preferred speeds and altitudes (280 to 300 knots IAS at altitudes around 25,000 feet) as well as being able to refuel helicopters at slow speeds (105 to 115 knots IAS).The A400M is equipped to receive fuel via a nose probe mounted above the cockpit thus providing a truly global reach for transport or tanking missions. The probe can be easily removed when it is not needed.

The A400M can also be equipped with a Universal Aerial Refuelling Receptacle Slipway (UARRSI) installation for refuelling from boom equipped tankers.


More about the A400M
Airbus Military