Talks are in "very early stages", and the plan is part "of longer term thing", as part of the plans to replace the 767s with Airbus A320s.
Here is an article from Reuters, as reported on Yahoo:
BA in talks to sell aircraft for RAF project
Monday December 10, 1:23 pm Eastern Time
BA in talks to sell aircraft for RAF project
LONDON, Dec 10 (Reuters) - British Airways Plc, Europe's largest airline, said on Monday it was in talks to sell its Boeing 767s
to a consortium bidding for a contract to supply Britain's Royal Air Force with in-flight refuelling tankers.
"The talks are in the very early stages,'' a spokesman for British Airways
told Reuters. The carrier has a fleet of 21 Boeing 767s, of which six were
grounded as part of cuts in capcity to cope with the drop in demand for air travel.
The spokesman said that the discussions with the Tanker and Transport Services Company were not
prompted by the September 11 attacks in the United States nor the weak economic conditions.
"It's much more of longer term thing which started a couple of years ago reviewing our fleet,'' said the
spokesman, referring to plans to replace the 767s with smaller Airbus A320 planes.
Two consortia are bidding for the 13-billion-pound ($18.62 billion) Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft
contract and the UK defence ministry is not expected to award it until late 2002.
The Tanker and Transport Service Company includes British defence and aerospace company BAE
Systems Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: BA.L), Boeing Co (NYSE:BA - news) and UK services
company Serco Group Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: SRP.L).
The rival bidder for the contract is the Air Tanker consortium of the European aerospace group EADS, which owns 80 percent of Boeing's civil aircraft rival Airbus SAS, and aeroengines maker Rolls-Royce plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: RR.L).
Other Air Tanker consortium members are French defence electronics and contracting group Thales SA and in-flight refuelling specialist Cobham Plc (quote from Yahoo! UK & Ireland: COB.L) of Britain.
[ 10 December 2001: Message edited by: SK ]