Leonardo: the C-27J spartan global fleet sets major milestone achieving 250,000 flight hours in operations

Rome, 18 December 2023 13:08

The military transport aircraft has been chosen by operators in 16 countries across all continents

Significant operational achievements through a wide range of defence and civil protection missions in the most challenging environments and operating conditions, where other aircraft can't be deployed

A wide spectrum of aircraft configurations, including fire-fighting, Maritime Patrol (MP), C3ISR, and special operations

Leonardo celebrates a major operational milestone achieved by the C-27J Spartan global fleet, which has now logged 250,000 flight hours. Chosen by military operators in 16 countries worldwide, the C-27J has been deployed since its entry into service into the most challenging terrains, environmental and operating contexts, from the Andes to Afghanistan.

Dario Marfè, Senior Vice President of Commercial, CSS&T & Proprietary Programmes Business of Leonardo's Aircraft Division, said: 'The Spartan embodies the very essence of the national security concept, proving to be the ideal solution for defence force operations and making a vital contribution to population support and civil protection tasks. In a world impacted by many emergencies, like the Covid-19 pandemic, the Spartan has sustained support to communities in need."

The aircraft's capabilities, which have been extensively demonstrated in many challenging operations, with its modular design have grown over the years to meet evolving requirements in the market, both in terms of technical characteristics and military/civil missions, leading to the latest standard, designated the C-27J Spartan Next Generation. This configuration features state-of-the-art avionics and winglets for greater efficiency and enhanced operational performance. Core avionics include a glass cockpit with five multi-functional colour screens, a radar system for tactical transport missions and advanced communication systems. The system architecture ensures interoperability with other transport aircraft. The addition of winglets further enhances the overall aerodynamics performance, by increasing the lift-drag ratio with benefits, including even better hot and high runway performance, increased payload, range, endurance and the overall deriving reduction in operating costs. The winglet design includes parts produced with modern 3D Additive Manufacturing technology.

The inherent growth potential and versatility of the C-27J leverages a solid basic design, a wide-ranging in-service experience as well as an established strong industrial know-how and expertise backing the type's ability to meet evolving market needs. The C-27J can be provided with in-flight refuelling, self-protection, secure communications and ballistic protection systems to operate in high-threat environments. With multiple roll-on/roll-off mission kits easily installed and transportable roll-on/roll-off mission systems, the C-27J can be quickly reconfigured into the configuration required for the current mission. A wide spectrum of mission configuration/versions also include fire-fighting, Maritime Patrol (MP), Command-Control-Communications, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C3ISR) and special operations versions.

Photos: https://leonardo.canto.global/b/JR2CN

Please find below selected stories highlighting some of the outstanding missions made by the C-27J so far

• C-27J Spartan: 10 Years of Humanitarian Operations - C-27J Spartan: 10 Years of Humanitarian Operations | Leonardo
• Covid-19 emergency - The C-27J twin-engine tactical transport plane | Leonardo
• Spartan, the indefatigable champion of the Peruvian skies - C-27J ideal for defence & civil protection missions | Leonardo - Aircraft
• C-27J Spartan: from Italy to the US, destination Australia - C-27J Spartan: from Italy to the US, destination Australia | Leonardo
• The U.S. Coast Guard's C-27J - The U.S. Coast Guard's C-27J | Leonardo
• C-27J Spartan Next Generation: we talk about it with the Project Test Pilot - C-27J Spartan Next Generation: we talk about it with the Project Test Pilot | Leonardo
• The C-27J Spartan lives up to expectations in Peru - The C-27J Spartan lives up to expectations in Peru | Leonardo
• The C-27J Spartan Next Generation towards greater multirole capabilities with the new firefighting configuration - Firefighting C-27J: towards greater multirole capabilities | Leonardo

For more information:https://aircraft.leonardo.com/en/products/c-27j-spartan-next-generation

Press Note (PDF, 225 KB)