Lockheed TriStar (RAF)

Common card · No. 257612

The RAF Tristar is a retired air-to-air refuelling (AAR) tanker and transport aircraft, formerly in service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). All airframes were second-hand Lockheed L-1011-500 TriStars converted from airliners previously operated by British Airways and Pan American World Airways (Pan Am); they entered service with the RAF in 1984. The TriStars were purchased following the Falklands War, to satisfy an urgent operational requirement for four strategic tanker/transport/freighter aircraft that had been identified during the conflict. Of the nine that eventually entered service, the first six were acquired from British Airways. Four of these were converted into KC1 variants that met the full requirement, while the remaining two were converted to K1 standard without a large freight door in the forward cabin area. The three ex-Pan Am aircraft performed a passenger-only role with underfloor freight, as C2/C2A variants. Upon entering military service, the RAF dropped the upper-case...

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