[sukhoi-30mki]

Setback: Leaks when the Voyager refuels jets have led to concerns it will be delayed entering service

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2125439/Fleet-13billion-refuelling-planes-built-RAF-dont-work-British-aircraft--compatible-American-jets.html#ixzz1rAg0SBwf

[RainMan]

Is this the same as the Tanker that lost to Boeing then got tied up legally here for years (thanks John McCain) then was selected, Boeing appealed, and eventually went back to Boeing.

[tomkat]

Yikes !

(kewl pic though  :-)

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Joe Lucas at work again.

[ken5050]

What's really telling, is that the author, in attempting to relate the size of the plane to the reader, compares it to a LANCASTER bomber, which along with the lesser known Stirlings and Halifaxes, were the heavy bombers of RAF bomber command in WW II..those planes are 70 years old..

I suspect that 75% of the papers readers have no idea what a Lancaster is. Sort of shows how Britain's military capability deteriorated since WW II.

Imagine an article in an American paper attempting to describe an F-22 or an F-35 by comparing it in size to a P-47 or a P-51;;

[bunkerhill7]

Couple wads of chewing gum otta do the trick.

[Oztrich Boy]

In theory, they can refuel jets in mid-air at 125 times the speed of forecourt garage pumps - at 5,000 litres a minute

That's the max rate of the Chobham 805E Fuselage hose drum unit - it may just be a problem dialing it back to the approx. 1500l/min fighters can accept fuel at.

The HDU wing 905E pods deliver fuel at the same rate the older pods Chobham have been building for 40 years and it's hard to see Tornados taking fuel from Victors and VC-10s for all that time and suddenly developing a problem with the new tanker.

[STD]

These planes will be modified after they serve their intended purpose; to refuel Israeli jets during the sustained air to ground campaign to destroy the Iranian nuclear threat.

Once the Mad Mullahs endure a few months of living in the 8th Century like their false profit, the system will be modified to supply fuel to European fighter bombers. I can't believe nobody here on FR couldn't discern the obvious.

[Publius6961]

although they work fine when used by American fighters.

Nope.
Not saying it.
Nope.
No way.
Uh uh.

[rmlew]

A militarised version of the Airbus A330-200 passenger plane, the Voyager can transport 400 soldiers.

This isn't an American story, but it could be. This is the Airbus A330 MRTT, used by Australia, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom. The Airbus A330 MRTT is the basis of the EADS/Northrop Grumman KC-45, which SecDef Rumsfeld chose to be the replacement for our KC-135 back in 2006. So not only did Boeing lose a contract and close a factory, but this European plane, with some Northrop Grumman parts, is crap from the get go.

Contact Congress!