Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Contains threads on Royal Air Force equipment of the past, present and future.
Opinion3
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Opinion3 »

Those at the top get there because they are able to make difficult decisions. My proposal is they wouldn't need to........

topman
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by topman »

Really not worth it, there's not that many that c17s can't cope and it's good at its various jobs. I don't see how it would be worth it.


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SKB
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SKB »


(235FireFly) 6/6/2018
A group of Royal Air Force Airbus KC2 Voyagers ( A330-243 MRTT ) land and takeoff from Gander International Airport ( CYQX ), Canada as part of the convoy delivering the first Lockheed Martin F-35 s to the United Kingdom.
ZZ331 and ZZ335 were used to refuel the four F-35's

benny14
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by benny14 »

SKB wrote: ZZ331 and ZZ335 were used to refuel the four F-35's
A third voyager was involved. It came out of South Carolina and escorted the F-35s up to Canada and then landed there at Gander while the other two took over.

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SKB
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SKB »

I think that one was ZZ330 on flight RRR9101, it had the red RAF 100 logo on the tail.
https://www.flightradar24.com/data/airc ... 0#11a10936

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by benny14 »

SKB wrote:I think that one was ZZ330 on flight RRR9101, it had the red RAF 100 logo on the tail.
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SKB
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SKB »


(Forces TV) 12th July 2018
Operation Shader began as a humanitarian aid mission but has grown into a complicated mission to try and defeat the Islamic State. Since 2014, RAF aircrew based in Cyprus have been flying daily missions over Iraq and Syria as part of a coalition of nations.

Lord Jim
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Lord Jim »

Voyager's made the front page of the Daily Mail!

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SKB
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SKB »

Lord Jim wrote:Voyager's made the front page of the Daily Mail!
This?
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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... broad.html

Little J
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Little J »

:lolno: :clap:

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SKB
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SKB »

AirTanker website quote:
The ‘core’ RAF Voyager fleet is made up of nine aircraft. Of these, at any one time, eight fly on the Military Aircraft Register (MAR) and one is tasked, minus military equipment, to fly on the Civilian Aircraft Register (CAR). The RAF has optional surge capability rights on a further five aircraft.

This civilian aircraft is operated on a ’charter’ basis to the MOD by AirTanker under its own Air Operators’ Certificate but with the advantages that come with exclusive usage. The aircraft can also be pulled-in by the RAF if required to support air transport movements and if needed, moved to the MAR to support additional air-to-air refuelling capability.
Not one of them can refuel the RC-135 Airseeker/Rivet Joint, C-17 Globemaster, or the P-8A Poseidon. No refueling booms fitted.
And only two of the Voyagers have been fitted for (but without) the centreline fuselage refueling boom.... :roll:

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Lord Jim »

As usual the so called Defence expert at he Daily Mail got his facts messed up, but the story is important. We are paying way over the odds for he Voyagers, and are limited in what we can and cannot do with them. What the RAAF got was a far better platform for less money. We couldn't even fit cargo doors on ours because it would interfere with passenger operations when in use as charter planes. However this is all water under the bridge, the MoD is stuck with contract.

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Timmymagic »

Lord Jim wrote:However this is all water under the bridge, the MoD is stuck with contract.
And its important to note that the MoD had no choice. The Treasury is at fault here. MoD's only option to replace the VC.10 and Tristar fleets that were on the cusp of being unable to fly was via a PFI at Treasury insistence. Airtanker was the best offer the MoD got, it was either that or no AAR capability.

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Lord Jim »

In place of Treasury insert Gordon Brown, the most inept Chancellor in recent history.

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by abc123 »

Lord Jim wrote:As usual the so called Defence expert at he Daily Mail got his facts messed up, but the story is important. We are paying way over the odds for he Voyagers, and are limited in what we can and cannot do with them. What the RAAF got was a far better platform for less money. We couldn't even fit cargo doors on ours because it would interfere with passenger operations when in use as charter planes. However this is all water under the bridge, the MoD is stuck with contract.
Of course, absolute disaster.
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Oh, noone's ever heard of Fortune favoring them, sir.
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SKB
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SKB »


...but only if you ignore the trans-Atlantic ferry flights earlier this year.

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Dahedd »

With the announcement today of the purchase of 5 E7 Wedgetail is it not about time to look again at booms on the Voyagers? That's now C17, P8 & E7s that require a boom to refuel.

Discuss!

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by downsizer »

Dahedd wrote:With the announcement today of the purchase of 5 E7 Wedgetail is it not about time to look again at booms on the Voyagers? That's now C17, P8 & E7s that require a boom to refuel.

Discuss!
There is no fucking money, discuss.

indeid
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by indeid »

downsizer wrote:
Dahedd wrote:With the announcement today of the purchase of 5 E7 Wedgetail is it not about time to look again at booms on the Voyagers? That's now C17, P8 & E7s that require a boom to refuel.

Discuss!
There is no fucking money, discuss.
The way we normally change a contract when we have no cash is to extend the contract or chop requirements.

No doubt Airtanker have a list ready to go.

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by Timmymagic »

downsizer wrote:There is no fucking money, discuss.
And HMT are not in the mood to be altering any PFI deals either...particularly when the penny has just dropped how bad value they are...

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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SW1 »

https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news ... 330-tanker

The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is the launch customer for the Smart enhancements to the Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT), Airbus announced here yesterday. This consists of automatic air-to-air refueling (A3R) and predictive maintenance. The RSAF has taken delivery of all six A330MRTTs that it ordered; one is on display in the static park at the Singapore Air Show.

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ArmChairCivvy
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by ArmChairCivvy »

SW1 wrote:The RSAF has taken delivery of all six A330MRTTs
I call that 'forward defence'... go out there, look for them, and shoot them dead before they are anywhere near "the two nickles and a dime" real estate that holds everything that makes up that Republic.
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by The Armchair Soldier »

Reservists delight as Voyager becomes a record breaker
A new world record was set by the Voyager aircraft for the fastest ever flight between the UK and the Falkland Islands. The journey of 6834 nautical miles was completed in 15 hours and 9 minutes, breaking the previous record, which had been set in 1987 by an RAF VC-10 aircraft, by 36 minutes.
Read More: https://www.raf.mod.uk/news/articles/re ... d-breaker/

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SKB
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Re: Airbus A330 Voyager (MRTT) (RAF)

Post by SKB »

36 minutes by VC-10 ?! That's some going. :clap: :mrgreen:

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