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The Singapore Defence Ministry has confirmed that country will buy an unspecified number of Airbus A330 MRTT tankers.
The long-rumoured acquisition was mentioned in an official twitter account post which stated; “air force will replace ageing KC-135R with Airbus A330 multi-role tanker transport aircraft.” The RSAF currently operates four KC-135Rs which it bought second hand from the US in the early 1990s and which are 1964-build aircraft.
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Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen later told the Singapore parliament during a budget speech that, next decade; “our current KC-135 aerial tankers will have been replaced by the Airbus A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport, which we have decided to acquire.”
It had been strongly rumoured that Singapore would announce its A330 buy at last month’s Singapore Airshow, but this failed to occur. Singapore operates F-15SG and F-16C/D fighters, and is interested in acquiring the F-35, either in CTOL or its STOVL form.
France last week confirmed it would also order the A330 MRTT to replace its ageing C-135FR tankers.
The twitter account also mentioned the island state would buy two more Sikorsky S-70B helicopters which had also been long-rumoured.
