After a lengthy gestation period, the first prototype A400M took to the air on 11 December 2009, heralding the start of a flight test programme that has now progressed to the point where production examples are entering service with the French and Turkish air arms. On order at present are 174 examples for eight countries. The RAF will get 22 examples of what it has officially named the Atlas C1 for service as part of its air mobility fleet at Brize Norton. A first RAF Atlas delivery is expected later in 2014.