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Airbus A400M Hits New Records Last Year

Airbus A400M Hits New Records Last Year. Airbus Defense & Space delivered its first A400M of the new year on January 12, bringing its total production of Atlas tactical transports to 56 units so far.

Its most recent delivery was the fifteenth A400M of the German Air Force - service record 54 + 16 (MSN64) - of a total commitment for 53 of the four-engine type.

airbus a400m german air force

Airbus A400M Hits New Records Last Year

Germany has the second largest active fleet of A400M, behind the Royal Air Force of the United Kingdom, which has now received 18 examples, out of a total of 22. France has received 13, with 37 other orders.

Additional recipients include Spain (2), Turkey (4) and export client Malaysia, which has already completed its fleet of four type strengths.

Airbus Defense & Space confirms that a total of 19 A400M was delivered in 2017, its highest annual production for the Atlas since deliveries began at the end of 2013.

The company's order book for the aircraft now totals 118 aircraft, to be delivered to the current European operators, in addition to other partners of the program, Belgium and Luxembourg. It also continues to market the type for a range of potential export customers.

The latest developments in the program include a "Grizzly" test aircraft that provides in-flight refueling for six combat aircraft of the Spanish Air Force Boeing F / A-18 during a test conducted on December 13, 2017.

Airbus Defense & Space says that 11.4 tons of fuel were transferred from the mission, from the hose under the wing of the A400M and the drug refueling capsules, and its central hose replenishment unit.

"The on-board certification authorities confirmed good results and the flight validated the two-crew cabin concept of the A400M for tanker missions," says the company.

The UK also completed a series of flight tests at the end of last year to assess the ability of the A400M to participate in maritime rescue operations.

The activity involved the deployment of a specialized rescue device that includes inflatable liferafts with containers and survival equipment from the rear loading ramp of the parachute transport.

"The tests successfully demonstrated the A400M's ability to safely deploy air-to-sea rescue devices and carry out long-range air-maritime rescue operations," says the Defense and Defense Equipment Agency of the United Kingdom.
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