Lockheed TriStar (RAF)

infobox Aircraft
name = TriStar
type = Strategic tanker/transport
manufacturer = Lockheed-California Co.



caption = Royal Air Force TriStar KC1
designer =
first flight = 16 November 1970 (L1011)
introduction = 1984
retired =
status =
primary user = Royal Air Force
more users =
produced =
number built = 9 conversions
unit cost =
developed from = Lockheed L-1011
variants with their own articles =

The Lockheed TriStar is an air-to-air tanker and transport aircraft in service with the Royal Air Force. All were converted from civilian L-1011-500 airliners.

Design and development

The Royal Air Force operates nine L-1011-500s TriStars, six ex-British Airways and three Pan Am.cite book |last= Frawley|first= Gerard|title=The International Directory of Military Aircraft, 2002-2003 |year=2002 |publisher=Aerospace Publications Pty Ltd |location= Fyshwick, ACT, Australia |isbn=1-875671-55-2 |pages=44 ] The TriStars were bought in the immediate aftermath of the Falklands War to bolster the long range capability of the RAF in the transport and tanker roles. All of the aircraft serve with No. 216 Squadron, based at RAF Brize Norton.

Marshall of Cambridge performed the conversion of the TriStars. Two of the aircraft are designated TriStar K1s and are passenger/tanker aircraft. Another four are KC1s and can operate as either tankers or passenger/cargo aircraft. The two TriStar C2 models and the solitary TriStar C2A are pure passenger aircraft, with C2A differing from the C2s in having some military avionics and a new interior.

The TriStar is expected to remain in service with the RAF until the end of this decade, when it is scheduled to be replaced by the Airbus A330 MRTT under the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft (FSTA) program. The Airtanker consortium, led by EADS, won the FSTA contract in January 2004. However, beginning in April 2004, there have been continuing rumors about the fragile state of the contract negotiations. This culminated in an ultimatum by the UK's Defence Procurement Agency, delivered to EADS, demanding a reduced price for the aircraft.Fact|date=March 2008 With continuing doubts over the FSTA program, Marshall Aerospace, has offered to buy and convert some of the large number of surplus commercial TriStars as tankers.Fact|date=March 2008 This would give the UK a much needed increase in refueling capacity (with the upcoming retirement of the VC-10 fleet) at a fraction of the cost of the £13Bn FSTA project.

Operational history

The aircraft have seen service in many conflicts. Two were deployed to King Khalid International Airport, near Riyadh in Saudi Arabia during the 1991 Gulf War as tankers, with the rest used for transport between the Persian Gulf and UK. The two aircraft deployed received nose art naming them Pinky and Perky. During the 1999 Kosovo War, TriStars deployed to Ancona in Italy, again as tankers, with four aircraft involved. TriStars joined Vickers VC-10s in the AAR role for Operation Veritas (Afghanistan), during which they provided aerial-refueling for US Navy aircraft. Their most recent wartime role was again over the skies of Iraq. The RAF deployed four TriStars during Operation Telic, to an as-yet-undisclosed location.Fact|date=March 2008

Variants

;Tristar K1:Conversion of former British Airways Tristar 500s for tanker/transport role (not fitted with a cargo door), two aircraft.;Tristar KC1:Conversion of former British Airways Tristar 500s for tanker/cargo/transport role, four aircraft.;Tristar C1:Former British Airways Tristar 500s operated as passenger aircraft before tanker conversion.;Tristar C2:Former Pan Am Tristar 500s operated as passenger aircraft, two aircraft.;Tristar C2A:One former Pan Am Tristar 500 operated as passenger aircraft, different avionics to the two C2s.

Operators

;UK
*Royal Air Force
**No. 216 Squadron RAF

pecifications (Tristar K1)

aircraft specification

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=jet
ref=The International Directory of Military Aircraft, RAF TriStar page [ [http://www.raf.mod.uk/equipment/tristar.cfm RAF Tristar page] ] Airliners.net [ [http://www.airliners.net/info/stats.main?id=272 Lockheed L-1011-500 page] , airliners.net.]
crew=3 (flight crew)
length main=50.05 m
length alt=164 ft 3 in
span main= 50.09 m
span alt= 164 ft 4 in
height main= 16.87 m
height alt= 55 ft 4 in
area main= 329.0 m²
area alt= 3540 ft²
empty weight main= 105,165 kg
empty weight alt= 242,684 lb
loaded weight main=
loaded weight alt=
max takeoff weight main= 245,000 kg
max takeoff weight alt= 540,000 lb
more general=Maximum Fuel Load: 136,080 kg (300,000 lb)
engine (jet)= Rolls-Royce RB.211-524B
type of jet= turbofans
number of jets= 3
thrust main= 50,000 lbf
thrust alt= 222.4 kN
max speed main=
max speed alt=
cruise speed main= Mach 0.83
cruise speed alt= 894 km/h, 483 kt
range main= 4200 nm
range alt= 7785 km
range more= with maximum passenger payload
ceiling main= m
ceiling alt= 43,000 ft
climb rate main= m/s
climb rate alt= 2820 ft/min
loading main=
loading alt=
thrust/weight=
more performance=

ee also

aircontent
related=
* Lockheed L-1011
similar aircraft=
* Boeing KC-767
* Vickers VC-10
* KC-10 Extender
* Airbus A330 MRTT
* Northrop Grumman KC-45
sequence=
lists=
* List of Lockheed aircraft
* List of active United Kingdom military aircraft
see also=
* Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft

References

* Yenne, Bill, "Lockheed". Crescent Books, 1987.

External links

* [http://www.raf.mod.uk/equipment/tristar.cfm Royal Air Force official site, Tristar]
* [http://www.airliners.net/info/stats.main?id=272 L-1011-500 page on airliners.net]
* [http://www.pbs.org/kcet/chasingthesun/planes/l1011.html L-1011 page on pbs.org]
* [http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/gallery/photo/L-1011/HTML/ECN-7848.html Lockheed L-1011 Wing vortex study on NASA/DFRC site]
* [http://www.nmedia.com/Tri-StarL-1011_1000k.wmv L-1011 Tribute video on NMedia.com]