EADS, Airbus Military to Highlight In-Flight Refueling Capabilities at 2010 ARSAG Conference
EADS' air-to-air refueling expertise will be a focus of this week's Aerial Refueling Systems Advisory Group (ARSAG) conference, which will include updates on the Airbus Military A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT).
The annual ARSAG meeting -- March 30 to April 1 in Orlando, Fla. -- will bring together representatives from U.S. military services and 14 other nations to discuss aerial refueling issues from the operational, safety, training, reliability and maintainability points of view.
Airbus Military will provide three presentations on the A330 MRTT, beginning today with a briefing on the capabilities it is providing for the Royal Australian Air Force. Presentations on April 1 will focus on systems design and flight-test achievements. The MRTT has refueled a range of aircraft -- from F-16 and F/A-18 fighters to the E-3 AWACS -- using its Advanced Aerial Refueling Boom and its hose-and-drogue refueling pods, and recently achieved an important certification milestone with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
The A330 MRTT has won all recent international competitions for military tanker aircraft, with 28 aircraft ordered by Australia, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The Royal Australian Air Force will become the initial operator, receiving the first of its five multi-role tanker transports later this year. Detailed information about the MRTT is now available at www.A330MRTT.com.
Airbus Military representatives also will be available to discuss the A400M, the world's most technologically advanced and versatile airlifter and aerial refueler. With its large cargo box and four 11,000-shaft-horsepower turboprop engines, the A400M can carry the outsized, heavier equipment needed by today's fighting forces over strategic distances into short, unprepared fields.
