Civilian aircraft in military use

Hi all,

I’m a long time reader, first time poster, thought I might as well come join all the fun and games 🙂

Ok, first thread, somethings that’s always interested me; the use of civilian platforms in military use. I’m sure everyone knows of all these types which have been used for multiple types of application over the years, to list but a few;

– BAC Comet as the Nimrod
– ATR 72 ASW
– Lockheed L-188 Electra as the P3C Orion
– Boeing 737-800 as the P8 Poseidon, as well as the Boeing 737 based AEWC Wedgetail
– SAAB 340 and 2000 based AEWC
– DC10, Boeing 707, and Tristar varients of the tankers

I’m sure there must be numerous other examples, and I haven’t included any Soveit/Russian, Chinese or other types. Would be great to see any other examples.

Also, what are the advantages of using exisiting civilian platforms and converting them to military use? Would it be better to develop a specific platform for a given role? Could it be as cost effective as converting an existing civilian type? What about some civilian types that haven’t been extensively used for military purposes, what other types can be put to good use? I’m thinking here of the Boeing 747, it must still be the most widely used wide body for long haul flights, with extensive support, yet hasn’t been widely used for military purposes, such as an MRTT, for which I’m sure it would be extremely good at. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m sure the Iranian Air Force used/use the B747 in the tanker role? I’m sure there’s a few pics I’ve seen of this. But any reason why it wasn’t widely used by other air forces? Anyway, would be great to hear other views on this topic, thanks in advance 🙂