New Refueling Voyager Planes Found Incompatible With British Jets

12:00 AM, April 5, 2012
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In a major setback for the Britain’s Royal Air Force, a fleet of supersize refuelling planes meant for the RAF were found incompatible with British jets, according to local media reports. Tests conducted on the massive new Voyager air-to-air tankers revealed that they are not compatible with the RAF Tornados. The connecting pipes, which join aircraft together in flight, leak when fuel is pumped through them. The setback will cost the Ministry of Defense a whopping £10 billion, the entire worth of the contract with makers AirTanker for 14 Voyagers. According to the reports, some inside the MoD are starting to fear the Tornado issue could delay delivery of the entire fleet. Nine of the planes are due to be in service as early as 2014. The Voyager is a military version of the Airbus 330 and has a dual role as a troop carrier capable of transporting 400 soldiers.

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