The United Arab Emirates Air Force and Air Defence has formally ordered two Airbus A330 Multirole Tanker Transport (MRTT), Airbus announced on November 14, 2021.
The order, announced during the 2021 Dubai Airshow, increases the UAE’s MRTT to five aircraft. The country received its first three A330 MRTT aircraft in 2013.
Deliveries of the new aircraft will commence in 2024 and the agreement also covers the upgrade of the country’s current A330 MRTT fleet to the version with the latest enhancements, Airbus said.
‘Since its entry into service in 2013 with the UAE Air Force, the A330 MRTT has delivered much more than initially expected, meeting our customer’s operational needs,” Bernhard Brenner, Executive Vice President Marketing and Sales at Airbus Defence and Space commented. “This repeat order, added to the growing MRTT customer base, confirms the suitability of our platform as the world’s tanker of reference.”