First Spanish A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport aircraft enters service

The Spanish Air and Space Force has commissioned its first A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft under a contract for three such aircraft signed in November 2021.

According to an Airbus announcement on 11 April 2025, the aircraft was delivered from the A330 MRTT aircraft conversion centre in Getafe and will be operated by the 45th Air Force Wing from Torrejón de Ardoz airbase near Madrid.

“With the entry into service of this first A330 MRTT, the Spanish Air and Space Force now has the world’s best tanker aircraft in its fleet,” said Jean-Brice Dumont, head of air power at Airbus Defence and Space. “The MRTT will not only provide interoperability with allied nations and strategic autonomy, but will also significantly increase projection, aerial evacuation and in-flight refuelling capabilities.”

Spanish Defence Minister Amparo Valcarce praised the aircraft as “a contribution to strengthening the European pillar in NATO – a system that gives us the confidence to reliably fulfil our commitments”.

The A330 MRTT for the Spanish Air and Space Force is equipped with a state-of-the-art hose-and-drogue refuelling system, has a flight endurance of more than 18 hours and has a range of 16,000 km.

According to Airbus, the A330 MRTT is the only new-generation tanker and strategic airlifter currently available and operational. Its large basic tank capacity of 111 tonnes enables it to successfully carry out aerial refuelling missions without additional tanks.

Thanks to its wide-body fuselage, the A330 MRTT can be used as a transport aircraft capable of carrying up to 300 troops or a payload of up to 45 tonnes. In addition, the aircraft can be configured with a dedicated medical evacuation (medevac) kit, allowing the installation of different stretcher modules and intensive-care stations.

The second and third Spanish A330 MRTTs are currently undergoing conversion at Getafe. The Spanish Air and Space Force’s 45th Wing has so far used these unconverted A330s to transport military personnel and equipment, for example during the ‘Pacific Skies’ exercise in 2024 and during the evacuation of Spanish nationals from Niger and Sudan in 2023.

Sixty-four A330 MRTTs are in service in 11 countries across Europe, Asia and America. A further 21 aircraft have been ordered. The largest operators are France and the UK with 12 and 14 aircraft respectively, with three aircraft still outstanding for France. The Multinational MRTT Unit (MMU), comprised of six NATO countries (Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and the Czech Republic), operates nine A330 MRTTs from its bases in Eindhoven and Cologne/Bonn.