Teething Troubles Beset New UK Military Air Safety Regime
The UK’s new Military Aviation Authority has created delays in programs as it beds in.
A Voyager tanker refuels a Typhoon and a Tornado. The entry into RAF service of this version of the Airbus A330MRTT was delayed while the MAA sought additional assurance to that provided by the aircraft’s existing civil certifications.
A Voyager tanker refuels a Typhoon and a Tornado. The entry into RAF service of this version of the Airbus A330MRTT was delayed while the MAA sought additional assurance to that provided by the aircraft’s existing civil certifications.

The UK’s new military air safety regime has contributed to the delayed entry into British service of some new platforms, such as the Airbus A330MRTT Voyager tanker, the Thales Watchkeeper UAS and the L-3 Integrated Systems Airseeker (the UK version of the USAF’s RC-135 Rivet Joint SIGINT aircraft). As a result, some UK aerospace industry managers have expressed dissatisfaction with the Military Aviation Authority (MAA), in off-the-record comments to this editor and others. But the senior Royal Air Force officers that currently lead the MAA are unapologetic about the increased scrutiny that they have imposed.