The Airbus CC-330 Husky is an in-development
Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...
version of the
Airbus A330 MRTT
The Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) is a European aerial refueling and military transport aircraft based on the civilian Airbus A330. A total of 15 countries have placed firm orders for approximately 82 aircraft, of which 64 had ...
based on the civilian
Airbus A330
The Airbus A330 is a wide-body airliner developed and produced by Airbus.
Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid–1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the Airbus A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along ...
. Nine aircraft will replace the existing
Airbus CC-150 Polaris fleet of five aircraft in the strategic transport and
air refuelling roles.
Development
In June 2017, the
Canadian Armed Forces
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
and
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...
announced their plan to procure a CC-150 Polaris replacement.
[Page 39; http://dgpaapp.forces.gc.ca/en/canada-defence-policy/docs/canada-defence-policy-report.pdf]
In July 2022, the Government of Canada announced a deal to acquire two used Airbus A330-200s which would be modified to A330 MRTT configuration, with four more to be acquired later, for a total of six aircraft.
In July 2023, the order was increased to nine aircraft, eight of which will be MRTT and one for VIP transportation. Four aircraft will be purchased new from Airbus, with five aircraft purchased used from the commercial market. The aircraft will be located on two bases, one in eastern Canada and one in western Canada.
Ottawa International Airport has been selected as the interim operating base for the first two aircraft.
The first of two, ex-
Kuwait Airways
Kuwait Airways (, ) is the flag carrier of Kuwait, with its head office on the grounds of Kuwait International Airport, Al Farwaniyah Governorate. It operates scheduled international services throughout the Middle East, to the Indian subcontine ...
aircraft, designated 330002 entered service in November 2023 as a VIP and strategic transport aircraft.
The second, designated 330003, entered service in February 2024.
The tankers will be equipped with both
probe and drogue and
flying boom
Aerial refueling ( en-us), or aerial refuelling (en-gb), also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to anot ...
refuelling equipment, permitting them to refuel any NATO or allied aircraft, which will also improve
NORAD
North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD ; , CDAAN), known until March 1981 as the North American Air Defense Command, is a combined organization of the United States and Canada that provides aerospace warning, air sovereignty, and pr ...
support.
Operational history
King Charles III arrived and departed Ottawa, Canada on aircraft 330002 during his
May 26 and 27, 2025 visit to attend the
State Opening of the Parliament of Canada.
See also
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Airbus CC-330 Husky
CC-330
Twinjets
Airbus A330
Low-wing aircraft