Origins The project has its origins in the Future International Military Airlifter (FIMA) group, established in 1982 as a
joint venture between
Aérospatiale,
British Aerospace (BAe),
Lockheed, and
Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (MBB) with the goal of developing a replacement for both the
C-130 Hercules and
Transall C-160. Varying requirements and the complications of international politics meant that progress on the initiative was slow. In 1989, Lockheed decided to withdraw from the grouping. Lockheed independently developed an upgraded Hercules, the
C-130J Super Hercules. With the addition of
Alenia of Italy and
CASA of Spain, the FIMA group became
Euroflag. Project management evaluated twin and quad
turbofan engine configurations, a quad
propfan configuration, and a quad
turboprop configuration, eventually settling on the turboprop option. Since no existing turboprop engine in the western world was powerful enough to reach the projected cruise speed of Mach 0.72, a new engine design was required. Originally, the SNECMA M138 turboprop, based on the
M88 turbofan core, was selected, but this powerplant was found to be incapable of satisfying the requirements. In April 2002, Airbus Military issued a new
request for proposal (RFP), which
Pratt & Whitney Canada with the
PW180 and
Europrop International answered. In May 2003, Airbus Military selected the
Europrop TP400-D6.
United Technologies alleged that the selection was a result of political interference. A Europrop partner executive said in April 2003 that Airbus was close to selecting the P&WC offer, claiming it was more than €400 million (US$436.7 million) cheaper than Europrop's bid. As the original deadline for the engine decision passed, Airbus CEO
Noel Forgeard said that P&WC's bid was nearly 20 percent less expensive, and declared that "As of today Pratt and Whitney is the winner without doubt [but] a much lower offer could make us change our minds", inviting Europrop to revise its offering, which it reportedly reduced in price by 10 or 20 percent. A later report described the revised bid as exceeding P&WC's bid by €120 million. (top),
C-130J-30 and
C-17 (bottom). The original partner nations were France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Belgium, and Luxembourg. These nations decided to charge the
Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR) with the management of the acquisition of the A400M. Following the withdrawal of Italy and revision of procurement totals, the revised requirement amounted to 180 aircraft. The first flight was forecast to occur in 2008 and first delivery in 2009. In April 2005, South Africa joined the programme, with the
Denel Saab Aerostructures receiving a contract for fuselage components. Malaysia was the second country outside Europe to be involved. Malaysia through CTRM is responsible for manufacturing composite aero components for the aircraft. The A400M is positioned as an intermediate size and range between the Lockheed C-130 and the
Boeing C-17, carrying cargo too large or too heavy for the C-130, while able to use rough landing strips.
Delays and problems In January 2009,
EADS announced that the first delivery was postponed from 2009 until at least 2012, and indicated that it wanted to renegotiate. EADS maintained the first deliveries would begin three years after the first flight. In January 2009,
Financial Times Deutschland reported that the A400M was overweight by 12 tons and may not have been able to meet a key performance requirement, the ability to airlift 32 tons. Sources told
FTD that it could only lift 29 tons, insufficient to carry an
infantry fighting vehicle like the
Puma. In response to the report, the chief of the
German Air Force stated: "That is a disastrous development," and that it could delay deliveries to the German Air Force (
Luftwaffe) until 2014. The Initial Operational Capability (IOC) for the Luftwaffe was later delayed and alternatives, such as a higher integration of European airlift capabilities, were studied. On 29 March 2009, Airbus CEO Tom Enders told
Der Spiegel that the programme could possibly be abandoned without changes. OCCAR reminded participating countries that they could terminate the contract before 31 March 2009. In April 2009, the
South African Air Force announced that it was considering alternatives to the A400M due to delays and increased cost. On 5 November 2009, South Africa announced the cancellation of its order . On 12 June,
The New York Times reported that Germany and France had delayed a decision whether to cancel their orders for six months while the UK planned to decide in late June. The NYT also quoted a report to the
French Senate from February 2009, noting: "the A400M is €5 billion over budget, 3 to 4 years behind schedule, [and] aerospace experts estimate it is also costing Airbus between €1 billion and €1.5 billion a year." In 2009, Airbus acknowledged that the programme was expected to lose at least €2.4 billion and could not break even without export sales. On 24 July 2009, the seven European nations announced that the programme would proceed and formed a joint procurement agency to renegotiate the contract. On 9 December 2009, the
Financial Times reported that Airbus requested an additional €5 billion subsidy. In January 2010, Airbus repeated that the A400M could possibly be scrapped, costing it €5.7 billion unless €5.3 billion was added by partner governments. Delays had already increased its budget by 25%. Airbus executives reportedly regarded the A400M as competing for resources with the
A380 and
A350 XWB programmes. In June 2009, Lockheed Martin said that both the UK and France had requested details on the C-130J as an alternative to the A400M. In November 2010, Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Spain and Turkey finalised the contract and agreed to lend Airbus Military €1.5 billion. The programme was then at least three years behind schedule. The UK reduced its order from 25 to 22 aircraft and Germany from 60 to 53, decreasing the total order from 180 to 170. In 2013, France's budget for 50 aircraft was €8.9bn (~US$11.7bn) at a unit cost of €152.4M (~US$200M), or €178M (~US$235M) including development costs. The
2013 French White Paper on Defence and National Security cut the tactical transport aircraft requirement from 70 to 50. As the A400M was unable to perform helicopter in-flight refuelling, France announced in 2016 that it would purchase four C-130Js. In July 2016, French aerospace laboratory
ONERA confirmed successful
wind tunnel trials of a hose and drogue configuration to permit helicopter refuelling by the A400M. Prior tests found instability in the intended hose due to
vortices generated by the
spoilers, deployed to achieve 108-130 kt air speed. In April 2016, production faults affecting 14 propeller gearboxes (PGBs) produced by Italian supplier
Avio Aero were discovered. The issue, involving a
heat treatment process that weakened the ring gear, affected no other PGBs; the units involved needed changing. Airbus noted: "pending full replacement of the batch, any aircraft can continue to fly with no more than one affected propeller gearbox installed and is subject to continuing inspections." Another PGB issue involved input pinion plug cracking, which could release small metallic particles into the oil system, which is safeguarded by a magnetic sensor. Only engines 1 and 3, which have propellers that rotate to the right, were affected. The
European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an Airworthiness Directive mandating immediate on-wing inspection, followed by replacement if evidence of damage was found. On 27 April 2016, Airbus warned there may be a substantial PGB repair cost. An interim PGB fix was certified in July 2016, greatly extending inspection intervals. In May 2016, Airbus confirmed that a cracking behaviour identified during quality control checks in 2011 was found in a French A400M's fuselage part. Not impacting safety, it could be repaired during regular maintenance/upgrade schedules. The aluminium-zinc
alloy, known as
7000 series, was used in several central frames. Its chemistry, along with environmental conditions, led to crack propagation. The alloy was excluded from future aircraft. A retrofit to remove it from early A400Ms, which could take up to seven months, was considered. On 29 May 2016, Enders conceded in an interview published in
Bild am Sonntag that some of the "massive problems" of the A400M were of Airbus' own making: "We underestimated the engine problems...Airbus had let itself be persuaded by some well-known European leaders into using an engine made by an inexperienced consortium." Furthermore, it had assumed full responsibility for the engine. On 27 July 2016, Airbus confirmed that it took a $1 billion charge over delivery issues and export prospects. Enders also stated that "Industrial efficiency and the step-wise introduction of the A400M's military functionalities are still lagging behind schedule and remain challenging."
Flight testing Before the first flight, required airborne test time on the
Europrop TP400 engine was achieved using a C-130
testbed aircraft, which first flew on 17 December 2008. On 11 December 2009, the A400M's
maiden flight was carried out from Seville. In April 2010, the second A400M made its first flight. In July 2010, the third A400M took to the air, at which point the fleet had flown 400 hours over more than 100 flights. In July 2010, the A400M passed ultimate-load testing of the wing. In October 2010, Airbus announced the start of refuelling and air-drop tests. By October 2010, the A400M had flown 672 hours of the 2,700 hours expected to reach certification. In November 2010, the first paratroop jumps were performed. Enders and A400M project manager Bruno Delannoy were among the skydivers. In late 2010, simulated icing tests were performed on the MSN1 flight test aircraft using devices installed on the wing's
leading edges. These revealed an aerodynamic issue causing horizontal tail
buffeting, resolved via a six-week retrofit to install anti-icing equipment fed with
bleed air. Production aircraft are similarly fitted. Winter tests were done in
Kiruna, Sweden in February 2011. In March 2012, high-altitude start and landing tests were performed at
La Paz at 4,061.5 m (13,325 ft) and
Cochabamba at 2,548 m (8,360 feet) in
Bolivia. By April 2011, a total of 1,400 flight hours over 450 flights had been achieved. In May 2011, the TP400-D6 engine received certification from the EASA. In May 2011, the A400M fleet had totaled 1,600 hours over 500 flights. By September 2011, the total increased to 2,100 hours and 684 flights. Due to a gearbox problem, an A400M was shown on static display instead of a flight demonstration at the 2011
Paris Air Show. By October 2011, total flight hours had reached 2,380 over 784 flights. Testing was cut short on 23 May, when, during a rejected takeoff test, the left side main wheels broke through the runway surface. Airbus Military stated that it found the aircraft's behaviour was "excellent". The undamaged aircraft returned to Toulouse. In March 2013, the A400M was granted
type certification by the EASA, clearing its entry to service.
Production and delivery Assembly of the first A400M began at the Seville plant of
EADS Spain in early 2007. Major assemblies built at other facilities abroad were brought to the Seville facility by
Airbus Beluga transporters. In February 2008, four Europrop TP400-D6 flight test engines were delivered for the first A400M. Static structural testing of a test airframe began in March 2008 in Spain. By 2010, Airbus planned to manufacture 30 aircraft per year. The Turkish partner,
Turkish Aerospace Industries, delivered the first A400M component to Bremen in 2007. The first flight, originally scheduled for early 2008, was postponed due to delays and financial pressures. EADS announced in January 2008 that engine issues had been responsible for the delay. The rescheduled first flight, set for July 2008, was again postponed. Civil certification under EASA CS-25 was followed by certification for military uses. In June 2008, the A400M was rolled out in Seville at an event presided by
King Juan Carlos I of Spain. On 12 January 2011, serial production began. In August 2013, the first A400M was delivered to the
French Air Force. It was formally handed over during a ceremony in September 2013. In August 2013, the first Turkish A400M conducted its maiden flight from Seville. In March 2015, Malaysia received its first A400M. In May 2015, it was revealed that the member nations had created a Programme Monitoring Team (PMT) to review and monitor progress in the A400M's development and production. The PMT inspects the final assembly line in Seville and other production sites. Early conclusions observed that Airbus lacked an integrated approach to production, development and retrofits, treating these as separate programmes. , England. On 9 May 2015, an A400M
crashed in Seville on its first test flight. Germany, Malaysia, Turkey and UK suspended flights during the investigation. Initial focus centered on whether the crash had been caused by new fuel supply management software for trimming the fuel tanks to enable certain manoeuvres; Airbus issued an update instructing operators to inspect all Engine Control Units (ECUs). A key scenario examined by investigators was that the torque calibration parameter data had accidentally been wiped on three engines during software installation, preventing
FADEC operations. On 3 June 2015, Airbus announced that investigators had confirmed "that engines one, two and three experienced power frozen after lift-off and did not respond to the crew's attempts to control the power setting in the normal way." On 11 June 2015, Spain's Ministry of Defence announced that prototypes could restart test flights and that further permits could soon be granted. The RAF lifted its suspension on A400M flights on 16 June 2015, followed the next day by the Turkish Air Force. On 19 June 2015, deliveries restarted. In June 2016, the French Air Force accepted its ninth A400M, the first capable of conducting tactical tasks such as airdropping supplies. The revised standard includes the addition of cockpit armour and defensive aids system equipment, plus clearance to transfer and receive fuel in-flight. ==Design==