Second Royal Malaysian Air Force A400M Undergoing Test Flights

The second Second Royal Malaysian Air Force A400M airflifter – M54-02 – is currently undergoing flight tests in Seville, Spain prior to the handing over and the flight home. The aircraft is undergoing a battery of tests under the watchful eyes of a RMAF acceptance team.
As reported previously the aircraft was supposed to fly home in December. However industry sources told Malaysian Defence that it was more likely that the flight is expected next year though the exact timing remained uncertain.
The delay was unavoidable as the manufacturer of the A400M, was under pressure from other buyers to deliver their aircraft first. The fatal crash in May – which caused a temporary test flight pause – is the main reason for the delays in delivery.
During the test flights and until the aircraft is accepted by RMAF, the aircraft will carry the EC400 registration number. This is the same flight number for all the A400M undergoing flight and acceptance tests at Seville.
It is likely that the third aircraft will be delivered in late 2016 and fourth in early 2017.
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