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| EADS MRTT KC-30A (Wiki Info) |
Spanish aerospace contractor EADS-Airbus Military wants to sell the Royal Australian Air Force a cut-price aerial fuel tanker the nation hasn't asked for in return for a shot at a billion-dollar ''battlefield air lifter'' contract.
Australia has already signed off on five EADS-Airbus Military air-to-air refuelling tankers that can be reconfigured to carry passengers or cargo for a total program cost of about $1.8 billion.
EADS is offering a sixth - and heavily marked down - A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) in the hope Defence takes a serious look at its C295. The tanker offer, which involves savings of hundreds of millions of dollars, stands even if this does not happen.
On the downside, the tanker program has been on Defence's projects of concern list since October 2010 and, as recently as last December, was 18 months behind schedule.
By accepting the sixth tanker Defence would be keeping open the Brisbane workshop where conversion work on the A330 MRTTs is being carried out. EADS said the deal would extend 200 highly skilled jobs for ''at least 12 months''.
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| EADS C-295 (Wiki Info) |
EADS says strong Defence support for Alenia Aeronautica's C-27J Spartan short takeoff and landing transport plane as the Caribou replacement could cost Australian taxpayers $300 million up front and another $400 million on support costs over the next 30 years. ''Why [have a] tender? Because Australian taxpayers have a right to expect their defence dollars are being spent wisely on the best value-for-money solution - not a gold-plated solution,'' EADS CASA executive Valentin Merino says. He argues EADS's C295 is a better replacement for the Vietnam War era Caribous (retired in 2009), would cost less to buy and be cheaper to operate than the Spartan.
The Pentagon's decision to scrap its Spartan fleet as part of its budget cuts is the real game changer. ''The entire foundation upon which the RAAF's preference for the C-27J was based has largely been swept away,'' he said.
Read the full story at The Canberra Times