"A400M is well capable of carrying the other versions. Not sure you'd be able to drive off and fight, but you couldn't do that off a C17 either and you'd have no chance of putting that weight on to a strip off a UK C17..."
You can drive off and fight a Mastiff of any variant from a C17. Most Mastiffs weigh approx 40k lbs. They invariably carry two at a time (complete) and they do drive off at the other end (once the chains have been removed!). What sort of strip are we talking about? Dont forget the requirement of the C17 was to land with an MBT (M1 Abrams) on board and on a strip of 3000ft long by 90ft wide. Not bad for such a big girl! She's not that much more expensive than an A400M ($200M each and counting) either, especially with all the delays/contract re-negotiations... In fact we are already about cost even, so which one would you prefer?
Last edited by Aim between the eyes; 20th Nov 2010 at 21:31.