A330 MRTT: Spain Receives Third and Final Tanker, Completing Air Force Order

Spain’s Air and Space Force (Ejército del Aire y del Espacio) has taken delivery of its third Airbus A330 MRTT multi-role tanker transport, completing the three-aircraft order placed by the Ministry of Defence in 2021. The Ministry of Defence announced the handover on its official X account on 20 October 2026, saying the aircraft will be used for strategic transport, air-to-air refuelling and medical evacuation.

Handover at Getafe

The ceremony took place at Airbus’s Getafe facility, where the A330 MRTT military conversions are carried out. Secretary of State for Defence Amparo Valcarce attended alongside civil and military officials. In remarks shared by the ministry, she said the programme was a meeting point for industry, operational autonomy and allied cooperation.

According to an Airbus statement cited by Spanish news agency EFE, the aircraft will be operated by the Air and Space Force’s Ala 45 from Torrejón de Ardoz Air Base in Madrid.

Ex-Iberia airframes converted in Spain

Specialist outlet Infodefensa reports that the three aircraft are former Iberia A330 airliners that were converted to the MRTT standard at Getafe. The contract, signed in November 2021, covers the aircraft, spare parts, ground support equipment, training and support. The first two aircraft were delivered in 2025, and in April 2026 a Spanish A330 MRTT carried out its first refuelling mission, with a Spanish Navy AV-8B+ Harrier II.

The tankers restore an air-to-air refuelling capability that Spain lost when it retired its Boeing 707 tankers. The Spanish aircraft use a hose-and-drogue system and are not fitted with the rigid flying boom.

Capabilities

Airbus figures cited in Spanish reports give the A330 MRTT an endurance of more than 18 hours, a range of up to 16,000 km and a fuel load of 111 tonnes without additional tanks. Its wide-body cabin can carry up to 300 troops or up to 45 tonnes of cargo, and it can be fitted with stretcher and intensive-care modules for medical evacuation.

Wider programme

Airbus says it has delivered 68 A330 MRTTs to more than 18 countries. The company announced plans earlier this year to raise the conversion rate at Getafe from four or five aircraft a year to seven or eight. Any expansion of Spain’s tanker fleet beyond the three aircraft depends on future decisions by the Ministry of Defence.

Featured image: U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Shelimar Rivera Rosado / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons