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Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft (FSTA) is a UK project to provide aerial refueling (AR) and air transport (AT) for the Royal Air Force using a version of the Airbus A330 MRTT. The Royal Australian Air Force announced in April 2004 that they had selected Airbus to provide tankers to a similar specification.

A Royal Air Force Lockheed TriStar, converted L-1011-500 used as tanker-transports for over 20 years by the time of the new programme

Plans involve the replacement of the RAF's current fleet of Vickers VC10s from 2008 and the Lockheed Tristars around 2012. The new fleet will continue to operate from the RAF air transport hub, RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire. It has yet to be announced what role the current AAR/AT squadrons, No. 101 and No. 216, will have in the PFI arrangement.

The FSTA will be a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) where the RAF will pay for aerial refueling and air transport missions as required. The RAF will continue to retain responsibility for all military missions, whilst the contractor will own, manage and maintain the aircraft and also provide training facilities and some personnel. The private company will also be able to earn extra revenue by using aircraft for commercial operations when not required by the RAF — the most suitable of which would be leased air-refueling missions for other European air forces. The RAF however will always have the "first call" on aircraft, being able to mobilise the entire fleet in times of crisis.

Final bids for the project were received from the two competing consortia on 30 April 2003.

• Air Tanker Ltd offered a mix of new and used Airbus A330-200s, team comprised of:
  • Rolls-Royce - Trent 700 turbofans
  • Cobham - Air-refuelling hose and drogue system
  • EADS - Airbus A330-200
  • Thales Group - Avionics etc.

• Tanker Transport Services Consortium (TTSC) offered converted British Airways Boeing 767s:
  • British Airways - Aircraft
  • Boeing - Conversion technology, using the USAF KC-767 as the basis of the design.
  • BAE Systems - Conversion of majority of aircraft and mission systems.
  • Marshall Aerospace
  • Serco
  • Spectrum Capital

The UK Ministry of Defence announced on January 26, 2004 that Air Tanker had been selected to enter into final negotiations to provide the RAF's FSTA.

The reasons for the selection of Air Tanker are many and varied but include:

• An overall more capable aircraft in the Airbus A330
  • The Airbus A330-200 cost more but can carry more fuel than early model KC-767.(The KC-30 is another name for the A330 MRTT) "Northrop spokesman Randy Belote said Northrop's K-30 would tack on roughly 20 percent in fuel capacity."^[1]
  • fuel offload of 111 tonnes is achieved without the need for additional fuel tanks — leaving aircraft cabin free for passenger and air cargo operations
• The attraction of a European solution over a British solution (such as BAE Systems) with associated employment in France and Germany
  • Aircraft conversion to tanker configuration
  • Fitment of military avionics
  • Aircraft certification
• Tension between Ministry of Defence and BAE Systems over project delays and cost rises on other major projects (e.g. Nimrod MR4 and Astute SSN)

Computer graphic of A330 MRTT with two Eurofighter Typhoon

Following aircraft selection the UK MoD began exclusive negotiations with the Airtanker consortium. However, beginning in April 2004, there were rumours about the fragile state of the contract negotiations. This culminated in an ultimatum by the UK's Defence Procurement Agency, delivered to EADS, demanding a reduced price for the aircraft. With continuing doubts over the FSTA programme, Marshall Aerospace, responsible for the conversion of the RAF's original Tristars, have offered to buy and convert some of the large number of surplus commercial Tristars. This would give the UK a much needed increase in capacity (with the upcoming retirement of the VC-10 fleet) at a fraction of the cost of the £13Bn FSTA project.

On February 28, 2005 the MoD named Airtanker as its preferred bidder for the £13bn contract.

As of September 2005 no further progress has been reported. Air Forces Monthly reports that the tanker shortage that could result from any further serious delay has led some RAF personnel to joke that FSTA stands for "F****ng Short of Tankers Again".

General characteristics

• Crew: 2 Pilots, 1 AAR operator
• Length: 193 ft (59.69 m)
• Wingspan: 197 ft 10 in (60.3 m)
• Height: 57 ft (17.89 m)
• Wing area: 3892.2 ft (361.6 m²)
• Empty weight: 54,657 lb (120,500 kg)
• Loaded weight: lb (kg)
• Useful load: lb (kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 104,326 lb (230,000 kg)
• Powerplant: 2× Rolls-Royce Trent 700 turbofan engines., 71,000 lbf (316 kN) each

Performance

• Never exceed speed: mph (km/h)
• Maximum speed: 547 mph (880 km/h)
• Cruise speed: 534 mph (860 km/h)
• Stall speed: mph (km/h)
• Range: 7,767 mi (12,500 km)
• Service ceiling: 41,000 ft (12,500 m)
• Rate of climb: ft/min (m/s)
• Wing loading: lb/ft² (kg/m²)

• Air Tanker Limited
• BBC News: EADS closes in on RAF tanker deal

• KC-X