From Christopher Booker's column in The Telegraph, at the end of the Clemenceau dit.
In May 2000, in the first flush of his enthusiasm for integrating Britain's defence effort with the EU, Tony Blair signed up to buy 25 A400M transport aircraft for the RAF, to replace our ageing Hercules fleet. Delivery was promi sed by 2006. After many delays, it was last week announced that the first A400s, now costing £100 million each, cannot be delivered until 2014 or even later - an overrun much longer than both world wars put together. We could still buy replacement Hercules from the US, off the shelf at £40 million each, less than half the cost. But such are the joys of "integration" with our European partners.
The breaking news the BBC wouldn't tell - Telegraph