Airbus & Lockheed Martin reaffirm tanker partnership
With an agreement in place to explore US military aerial refueling opportunities, Airbus and Lockheed Martin senior executive leaders met for some “tanker talk” during the 2019 Paris Air Show.
“Since signing our Memorandum of Agreement with Airbus last December, our teams have been working to expand our business relationship with a focus on providing the US Air Force with the very best capability in aerial refueling,” said Michele Evans, Executive Vice President for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics. “We believe with Airbus’ and Lockheed Martin’s expertise in air refueling and innovative, combat-tested technologies such as low observability and networking operations, we make a powerful team to address the U.S. Air Force’s tanker needs today and into the future.”
Dirk Hoke, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space, continued: “The relationship with Lockheed Martin through this exciting project is growing day by day, and we’re looking forward to presenting our offer to the U.S. military in the near future. Our A330MRTT has been refueling U.S. military aircraft on combat missions since 2014, and together with Lockheed Martin’s proven record serving the U.S. Air Force we truly believe we can offer unbeatable capabilities.”
“We have said it before and I can only repeat it – the A330MRTT is the most successful and most capable tanker platform in the world. It has proven its versatility and capability time and again. It is a tremendous asset for any military, including the US,” Alberto Gutiérrez, Head of Military Aircraft at Airbus, concluded.
