Quote Roland P. "Of course we needed a new tanker aircraft, something was needed to provide us with a more modern capability; something was needed to replace the
26 VC10 tankers we had!!"
As I have said, a VFM TriStar fleet enhancement (similar to the Marshalls proposal) would have been quite sufficient to match what the FSTA capability is , for the next 10 years. Coupled with the flexibility of some A400M tankers
. Don't forget, an FSTA Tanker sits on the ground at MPA at huge expense.
What is this? "Modern Capability"? A tanker is really just a crate to lug fuel where it is needed, with some military kit scabbed on to give some survivability and mission enhancement. IMO, the TriStar was far better equipped than FSTA.....you can tell me why it is! Maybe you don't know? Maybe the USAF are wrong to still have fleets of KC135 and KC10?
Cheers
OAP