A-400 Atlas transport wonder

[waz]

Some great facts about the aircraft.

See inside the Airbus A400M Atlas military cargo plane made famous by Tom Cruise that reportedly cost more than $30 billion to produce​

Thomas Pallini
Jan 22, 2022, 12:15 PM

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

• One of Airbus' latest innovations isn't an airliner but a military troop and cargo transport plane.
• The Airbus A400M Atlas can carry up to 37 tons of cargo and be used for transport, air-to-air refueling, and paratroop missions.
• European, Middle Eastern, and Asian countries have been Airbus' top customers for the Atlas.

Airbus sells more than just commercial airliners, it also sells military transport aircraft.​

An Airbus A400. A Periam Photography / Shutterstock.com

Commercial aircraft manufacturers have long engaged in lucrative endeavors in support of the defense industry, and Airbus is no different. While the public marvels at Airbus' latest passenger jets, the top brass of national militaries marvel at its war-ready troop transport, aerial refueling, and military cargo aircraft.​

An Airbus A400 of the German Luftwaffe. SpaceKris/Shutterstock.com

Airbus launched the A400M Atlas program in 2003 with the goal of supplying countries of the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation. The first A400M was delivered to France in 2013 after 10 years of development and a four-year delay.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider
Source: Airbus and Financial Times

Now, numerous countries have placed 176 orders for the aircraft. Nations that have orders with Airbus include Malaysia, Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Spain, Turkey, Kazakhstan, and the UK.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider
Source: Airbus

The A400M is powered by turboprop engines and takes aim at the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. One of the most iconic planes in US military history, the C-130 has been in every US war since the Vietnam War.​

A Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport aircraft U.S. Air Force photo by Cynthia Griggs

Tom Cruise also famously latched onto the side of an Airbus A400 in the movie "Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation," in the aircraft's first appearance in a Hollywood blockbuster.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

The UK Royal Air Force brought one of its Airbus A400Ms to the Dubai Airshow in November. Here's what it's like.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

A truly European aircraft, assembling the A400M requires three European countries. The A400's wings are built in the UK, its fuselage is built in Germany, and assembly takes place in Spain.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider
Source: Airbus

Airbus designed the A400M to be much like, well, an Airbus. The A400M boasts performance capabilities and qualities traditionally found in the commercial airliners that Airbus produces that places it a step ahead of older models like the C-130 Hercules.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

Four EuroProp International TP 400 turboprop engines power the A400M and enable a top speed of Mach 0.72 and a cruising altitude of 37,000 feet that can be extended up to 40,000 feet in special circumstances.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider
Source: Airbus

Distance is also a key feature of the A400M as its maximum range of 4,800 nautical miles gives the aircraft a truly intercontinental purview. Under the right conditions, flights between London and San Francisco; Paris and Seattle; and New York and Honolulu are possible.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

Though, the A400M can have an unlimited range thanks to its aerial refueling capabilities. Other fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters can even be refueled by the A400M.​

An Airbus A400M being refueled. Airbus

Put simply, the A400M "can fly further, higher, and faster" than the C-130, Ed Horne, a wing commander with the UK RAF that formerly flew the Hercules and now flies the Atlas, told Insider.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

Around 160 passengers can fit in the cargo compartment of the A400M when fitted with extra rows of passengers seats down the center.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

Built-in passengers can be found onboard the aircraft alongside its cabin walls.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

The seats, however, are quite basic with minimal cushioning, as is standard on military transport aircraft, and far from what can be found on Airbus' airliners.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

And while the maximum passenger count is around 160, the RAF flew as many as 203 passengers on one evacuation flight during the Afghanistan refugee airlift in August.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

Medical litters can be affixed in the cargo compartment to transport the injured and ill.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider

As many as 66 stretchers can be loaded onto the aircraft with room for 25 medical support personnel.​

An Airbus A400M at the Dubai Airshow 2021. Thomas Pallini/Insider
Source: Airbus and Financial Times

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[Bengal71]

Very expensive.

 

[Beast]

Expensive to operate too yet still can't haul an mbt.