Airbus A400M Completes Firefighting Tests
AIRBUS Defence and Space announced today the successful completion of a series of test drops and demonstrations of its A400M firefighting demonstrator kit in Nîmes-Garons, France. The objective of this test campaign was to conduct an independent assessment by the Entente-Valabre’s Test and Research Centre (CEREN) on the effectiveness of the A400M’s firefighting kit. CEREN is certified by the French Ministry of the Interior to assess forest firefighting equipment, training of personnel in France and abroad, and is also an international authority in this field.
The test campaign, which ran at the end of April 2025, involved the A400M performing multiple drops over a designated section of the airfield. These rigorous so-called cup grid tests allowed CEREN to precisely assess the system’s capabilities, including the accurate distribution and concentration of retardant upon reaching the ground. During the drops, the aircraft reached altitudes under 30 meters (98 feet) and speeds around 230 km/h (125 knots).
The A400M Roll-on/Roll-off (Ro-Ro) firefighting kit offers unique operational advantages previously unavailable on the market. Its innovative roll-on/roll-off design requires no permanent modification to the aircraft, allowing any A400M in a fleet to be rapidly converted for firefighting missions on very short notice. The system, housed in the cargo hold, can discharge up to 20,000 litres of water or fire retardant by gravity through the rear ramp, with tanks capable of being refilled in less than 10 minutes using standard ground pumps. Furthermore, the A400M’s inherent ability to take off and land on short and unpaved runways significantly enhances its flexibility, enabling operations from a wide range of air bases and airfields closer to fire zones. Its design also supports high manoeuvrability and potential for day and night operations under the latest safety standards.
“Following initial tests conducted in Spain, the successful completion of these tests in Nîmes is a crucial step forward in our ambition to shape an ecosystem of firefighting capabilities. The A400M’s exceptional versatility, combined with the rapid deployment capabilities of this kit, offers a game-changing asset to complement existing technologies and platforms on the ground, in air and in space” said Airbus Head of Sustainability and Communications Jo Müller.
Airbus continues to promote a comprehensive range of aerial firefighting solutions that cover both indirect and direct fire attack missions, aligning with its commitment to decarbonisation and contributing to the fight against the escalating global challenge of wildfires. Firefighting capabilities are an extremely vital component of peacetime missions for A400M operators across the globe, a capability that can be achieved in 2 to 3 hours by installing the modular Ro-Ro firefighting kit onboard.
The A400M has been delivered to nine countries to date, accumulating more than 200,000 flight hours and carrying out a plethora of missions including humanitarian assistance. In Southeast Asia, the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) has been operating four A400Ms since 2015 while Indonesia finalised its order for two units in 2022. The Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) is expected to take delivery of its first A400M later this year, successfully rolling out of the paint shop at the Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Seville, Spain earlier this month.-shp/adj/dl (Pix:AIRBUS)