To be fair though, the A400M is billed a competitor to the C-130J rather than the C-17, so you could swap out
C-17 in your post with
A400M to get the same argument as to how the A400M is much better than the C-130J.
As you say though, the C-17 is no longer an option so a moot point really.
Is it right that they have similar short austere field performance? Genuine question.
The C-17 supposedly has a CBR of 12
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/ar...rt-gap-225865/
While I have seen the A400M quoted as a CBR of 6.