2018 is still the official target for the French Air Force to take delivery of its first A330 MRTT aerial refuelling tanker aircraft — the first step in the replacement of its ageing fleet of 14 C-135FRs and KC-135s. Scaled back by the new White Paper, the acquisition plan now involves a total of 12 aircraft, whose missions will also include the logistic and passenger transport role currently performed by the two A340s and three A310s of the 3/60 “Estérel” transport squadron.
Airbus Defence & Space (ADS) – which includes the activities of the former Airbus Military unit – has only recently submitted its technical and commercial proposal to the French military procurement agency (DGA) and the French Air Force. Nagotiations are expected to continue until the summer, by which time a contract should be awarded to ADS. The current multiyear spending bill plans for the delivery of just two aircraft by 2019. The 12 aircraft will probably be split into batches, the contents of which have yet to be defined. One thing is certain: deliveries will not be completed before 2025. To ensure a smooth transition to the future fleet, three KC-135Rs will undergo an avionics upgrade, starting this year.
Cargo door.
As far as the overall configuration of the aircraft is concerned, a number of options were confirmed by an initial risk-reduction analysis performed in 2012. Thus, it has been decided that half of the French MRTT fleet will be fitted with a cargo door similar to that of the A330-200F on the port side of the fuselage to place up to 55 tonnes of payload on board. However, with defence spending under close scrutiny, other design features remain to be finalised. For example, the number of refuelling points might be reduced to three (two underwing pods and a boom system), despite the fact that a four-point option was also studied, with an additional Fuselage Refuelling Unit (FRU).
The fact that these aircraft will play a role in French nuclear deterrence implies a certain number of modifications specific to France. A certain (classified) number of aircraft will form a core unit that must be immediately available in the event French strategic air assets (FAS) are mobilised.