 Airbus
Military has today rolled out the first complete A400M
military transport aircraft from the Final Assembly Line at
the EADS Military Transport Aircraft Division (MTAD)
facility in Seville, Spain.
 Presented
to the customers, the world’s press and presided over by
His Majesty Juan-Carlos I, King of Spain, the new aircraft
heralds a new era in military airlift capability.
Designed to a
recognised requirement for a new airlifter for European air
forces, the A400M incorporates state-of-the-art materials
and technology that are being continuously perfected in
today’s civil aircraft fleets. Features such as electronic
flight controls, carbon composite structures and an
automated handling system will bring new standards of
operability and safety to military aircrews.
 Launched
under a single contract in 2003 with 180 orders for seven
European launch customers, the A400M represents the most
ambitious military procurement programme ever undertaken in
Europe. The launch customer nations, Belgium, France,
Luxembourg, Germany, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom
were subsequently joined by Malaysia and the Republic of
South Africa, which recognised the potential of the new
airlifter for their own requirements and brought the total
number of commitments to 192.
 "Today
is a great day for our industry," said Carlos Suarez,
CEO of Airbus Military and Head of MTAD: "This is the
result of the combined effort and determination of those
that have been involved in this programme. It has been
supported by the national governments - our customers, the
industrial partners, the suppliers, and all the employees
who have worked to produce the aircraft. I would like to
thank and congratulate them all."
 The
overall contract, worth some 20 billion Euros was signed
with a single interface between Airbus Military and OCCAR, (Organisation
Conjointe de Cooperation
en matière d’ARmement), the contractual
body representing all seven European customer nations.
 "It
is our joint determination to show that EADS can design and
manufacture a long-range transport aircraft which will set
new standards in the military airlift world and on the
international markets", said Louis Gallois, CEO of EADS
 Versatility
is the characteristic that best describes the A400M, it
being conceived with both tactical and strategic capability.
With a payload of up to 37 tonnes over ranges of up to 4700
nm, the A400M is designed to carry all loads and vehicles in
the European Staff Requirement (ESR) inventory, serve as an
aerial delivery platform and act as an in-flight refueller
for both fast jets and helicopters.
 Important
challenges are still ahead, like the engine first flight on
the FTB within the engine flight test programme or the
MSN001 first flight.
The A400M is the
first truly new military transport aircraft of its category
designed in over 30 years, with twice the capacity and twice
the payload of the current aircraft types that it will
replace. It is all set to become the new standard in
military airlift.
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