Besides, with such a miniscule AAR force (or rather, flight?) of a mere 9 A330 tankers, who would ever need any reservists?
9 regular use aircraft. Just nine. With another 5 bucket-and-spading for third part revenue. Looking back at my notes of the 1996 AT-AAR seminar, it seems that they were talking of '25-30' future tankers back then.
Now, I thought that the TypHoon had both rather a small internal fuel capacity and a very slow onload rate. So how will so few hoses in the sky be able to cope, should there ever be a real need?
The ever-imploding RAF. In 1963 there were 22 squadrons of V-bombers alone, plus an entire Command of air transport aircraft. Soon, it seems, when the VC10s finally retire not long before their 50th birthdays in RAF service, the entire AT-AAR force will fit on just one aerodrome.......