What makes the A330 MRTT so special? The aircraft’s pioneering innovations in air-to-air refuelling, dual use European civil-military technology and the strategic autonomy it gives its operators are at the heart of its worldwide appeal.
It was more than a century ago that two US Air Force DH-4B biplanes carried out the first successful air-to-air refuelling. According to aviation historians, Lieutenant Virgil Hine and Lieutenant Frank W. Seifert in the tanker had to lower a 15-metre hose by hand while flying in formation – an incredibly risky manoeuvre. Meanwhile, Captain Lowell H. Smith and Lieutenant John P. Richter in the receiving aircraft were able to grab the hose and connect it, transferring approximately 284 litres of fuel.
Fast forward from those pioneering flights in 1923 to today.
The hundreds of litres of fuel transferred in those first hose operations have been transformed by a sophisticated boom system into fuel flows of up to 4,500 litres per minute, and 1,500 litres with hose and drogue.Thanks to the Airbus A330 MRTT, a market that was dominated by US manufacturers until the late 2000s is now technologically led by Europe. The tanker aircraft is capable of refuelling 25 different receiver aircraft and providing global coverage for air forces with a range of up to 16,000km.
The aircraft that can reach every corner of the world
Air-to-air refuelling has paved the way for air forces to extend their reach and enhance their strategic capabilities. Today, the A330 MRTT supports critical missions ranging from air power projection, rapid troop deployment and cargo transport to aeromedical evacuation and humanitarian relief.
Standing on the shoulders of giants
“Two aircraft flying at 20,000 or even 30,000 feet at a ground speed of about 800 km/h, approaching each other until they are only about 20 metres apart when the boom or hoses are extended and then physically connected… Air-to-air refuelling is an amazing aerial feat, but we have come a long way technologically,” says Juan Cabrera García, Flight Test Engineer & Test Aerial Refuelling Operator at Airbus Defence and Space.
