The UK Ministry of Defence has delayed by a year the entry into service of in-flight refuellers to be acquired under the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft (FSTA) programme. The service is now due to start in early 2008.
Two consortia are bidding for FSTA: AirTanker and Tanker Transport Services (TTSC), offering Airbus A330 and Boeing 767 platforms respectively. Both have expressed disappointment at the delay, but add that they remain committed to the programme.
The two are bidding to provide around 20 tankers for 27 years, which the MoD will fund using a private finance initiative (PFI), essentially paying for a "hoses in the sky service" rather than for the aircraft and their operational and support costs.
Defence procurement minister Lord Bach says the delay is because contract negotiations with the two have been slower than planned and because of "experience in the length of time taken to close a PFI deal after the preferred contractor announcement". Industry sources expect a selection by the year end.
Source: Flight International
