Britain In Talks With Boeing For Another C-17
Britain is negotiating the purchase of another Boeing C-17 airlifter to boost the Royal Air Force's ability to supply troops fighting the Taliban in southern Afghanistan. If the procurement gets the go-ahead, the Ministry of Defence here said it hopes to complete contract negotiations by the end of the year. Approval of the purchase would see the RAF's fleet of C-17s grow to seven aircraft. An MoD spokesman confirmed negotiations were underway but said no deal had yet been done to acquire the aircraft.
"The U.K. has engaged in exploratory discussions with the U.S. Air Force and Boeing regarding the feasibility of procuring a seventh C-17 aircraft for the U.K. No commitments have been made, and no decisions have been taken," he said. "If the department decides to purchase a new C-17, then we plan to be on contract with Boeing by the end of December 2009, with a view to delivery in December 2010 and an in-service date of March 2011," said the spokesman. The rapid in-service date suggests the British will be given an early delivery slot earmarked for the U.S. Air Force.
The C-17 has been the backbone of an RAF's airbridge operation, which has been severely stretched supporting Britain's growing military presence in Afghanistan. The British have been operating C-17s since 2001, when they leased four aircraft. The airlifters were eventually purchased by the RAF and the fleet has grown to the point where the British took delivery of two aircraft last year and are now poised to acquire their seventh aircraft, subject to final government approval. Analysts think the RAF has hopes to acquire at least one more aircraft before the Boeing C-17 production line closes. Funding is likely to be an issue for the cash-strapped MoD. The MoD here is estimating line closure in 2011. However, a Boeing spokesman said there was currently no cut-off point and the production line was good until at least 2012.
A Boeing spokesman in the U.S. declined to discuss the possible deal with the British beyond saying, "We continue to see strong international interest in C-17s. Our customers, however, prefer to announce their intentions on their own timetable. The question is best addressed by the U.K.'s MoD."
The British said the purchase of the additional aircraft was not directly connected with delays to the Airbus A400M airlifter program. "A400M is the replacement capability for the Hercules C-130K tactical transporter. We have looked carefully at the intra-theater operational requirement after the C130-K goes out of service in 2012. Although a C-17 can be employed in a tactical role and will help to mitigate against operational losses of C-130J, analysis suggests that the current fleet of 24 C-130J can sustain anticipated intra-theatre airlift tasking on current operations until A400M comes into service."
The first flight of the A400M is expected in the next few days. The partner nations in the program are still trying to hammer out a deal with Airbus parent EADS on the revised timing and cost of the program, which is currently three years late and hugely over cost. French media earlier this month said Britain is expected to cut the number of aircraft it will buy from 25 to 19 aircraft in order to stay within funding availability. One British industry executive said earlier this week he thought the number the RAF get could be even less.
Asked if the C-17 buy could have an impact on A400M numbers, the spokesman said, "We keep our operational requirements under constant review, and we will look hard at the implications of the acquisition of any enduring capability. We continue to work with OCCAR [the European program office] and partner nations to find a way forward on the A400M program. It would be inappropriate to comment on these discussions at this time," he said.