Vickers VC-10

Airliner design and development

Vickers developed the VC10 for intercontinental services, including routes to Africa and the Far East where runway length, temperature and elevation could limit a jet airliner’s load. Its rear engine arrangement kept the passenger cabin comparatively quiet. The prototype first flew on 29 June 1962, and BOAC introduced the aircraft into commercial service in 1964.

The Super VC10 extended the fuselage and increased take-off weight and passenger capacity. This distinction later mattered to the RAF tanker fleet: the C1K retained the shorter transport airframe, while the K3 and K4 conversions used Super VC10 airframes.

C1K cabin, freight and crew

The C1K has a large freight door in the forward left side of the fuselage and a strengthened cabin floor. Its cabin can be arranged for passengers, a mixture of passengers and freight, or a full palletised-freight load. Ground equipment and vehicles can be carried within the aircraft’s loading limits. A medical-evacuation configuration can accommodate up to 68 stretchers.

The crew positions include two pilots, a weapons systems officer, a flight engineer and an air loadmaster, with cabin staff added as required. The loadmaster and cabin staff support the transport task as well as the flight-deck crew. Crew requirements and cabin layout therefore depend on the mission.

Two-point and three-point refuelling

During the 1990s, C1 transports were converted for air-to-air refuelling by fitting a pod beneath the outer section of each wing. A hose trails from each pod, ending in a drogue basket. A compatible receiver aircraft connects its probe to that basket. Two aircraft can refuel from the C1K’s wing pods at the same time.

The K3 and K4 add a hose drum unit beneath the rear fuselage. The wing hoses serve tactical aircraft, while the centreline hose can serve larger aircraft and compatible fast jets. Three available refuelling points do not guarantee that a particular combination of receivers can use them simultaneously.

VC10 tankers can also receive fuel through their own nose-mounted probe. Giving and receiving fuel are separate capabilities: they require a compatible hose-and-drogue connection and appropriate clearance for the aircraft involved.

Fuel capacity and fuel available to give away

The tanker uses part of its fuel to reach the refuelling area, remain on station and return to land. The fuel available to other aircraft is therefore smaller than the total fuel carried. The K3’s extra fuselage tanks increase its capacity relative to the K4; the C1K keeps its transport cabin and original tank arrangement.

Capacity is only one part of a tanker plan. The number and type of aircraft needing fuel, the distance to the refuelling area and the time spent there all affect the useful fuel that can be delivered. A large fuel load is not a promise that the tanker can give that whole load to fighters.