What about the 24 C130Js and 8(9) C17s then? (Pre-SDSR figures)
And don't count on 9 A330s and any A400Ms surviving the cull that is about to come our way.
Just speculation. I suspect that the Airbus types will receive a degree of protection because government interest in the programmes extends outside of defence capabilities. The C-130J and the C-17 are amongst the few UK platforms with a realistic possiblity of being sold-on to other nations.