"C-17 Advances as A400M Slips"

Just to rub it in (AW&ST, Sept. 29, p. 20--text subscriber only):

NATO has taken a big step forward in boosting its airlift capacity with the signing of a memorandum of understanding to acquire three Boeing C-17 airlifters.

The move comes as EADS has acknowledged that the A400M’s first flight will not take place this year. It was initially supposed to take place last year and has been delayed repeatedly. EADS, the majority partner in the Airbus Military consortium developing the airlifter, blames “unavailability of the propulsion system,” and has not given a new first flight date.

The TP400, being developed by Europrop International, is now being prepared for flight trials on the Marshall Aerospace C-130 testbed. The engine will complete about 50 flight-test hours, at which time the expectation is the A400M will be cleared to fly.

EADS says it’s not adjusting its financial guidance as a result, although the delay will likely spell the need to take further financial provisions. With no schedule margin left, delays in getting to first flight translate directly into postponing deliveries to customers, company officials concede. The first handover now may not take place until at least 2011 [emphasis added]...

The delay could force some customers to review their airlift plans. The U.K. at one point considered buying up to 10 C-17s; it so far has committed to six and indicated it could go higher if the production line remains open.

Meanwhile, NATO hopes to take delivery of its first C-17 in March [emphasis added], with two more to follow roughly three months apart. The U.S. Defense Dept. is providing the first aircraft, while NATO is buying the other two directly. They will be based at the Papa air base in Hungary.

So far, 12 countries have signed the agreement: Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Sweden and the U.S. The Czech Republic is still debating the issue, but chances are seen as slim it will commit. Italy has asked for an extension to sign until December. The acquisition is the first major NATO weapons purchase since the alliance made the commitment to buy E-3 Awacs early warning aircraft 30 years ago.