Fair one - "clearances" is the wrong word. I understood that Lockheed/USAF had conducted some airdrop serials at Edwards to prove that it could. Actual "clearances" for individual national chute/load combinations obviously rested with the trials organisations of the customer nations.
It doesn't really change the price of fish regarding the A400 and the time gap between delivery and its first cleared airdrop tho. Unless we have some uber joined up airbus/qinetiq pre-delivery trials arrangement then the arrival of the aircraft with a "clearance" to drop a French Jeep under a german chute reduces RAF airdrop trials by precisely zero days. It would be nice to hear that we did indeed have some UK pre delivery airdrop work planned but I shan't hold my breath
