German budget commitee approves the purchase of 6 C-130 airlifters

German budget committee approves the purchase of 6 C-130 airlifters

By Dario Leone
Oct 27 2018
Share this article

The C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft will be stationed in Evreux in Normandy where France already operates the same type of aircraft

A German parliamentary source has told Reuters that the budget committee of the lower house of parliament has approved the purchase of six C-130 airlifters.

The package includes the procurement of spare parts, maintenance of the aircraft in the first three years and the initial training of technical and aviation personnel.

The C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft will be stationed in Evreux in Normandy where France already operates the same type of aircraft.

The U.S. government had approved the sale of 3 C-130J-30s and 3 KC-130Js to Germany in May.

Plans are also underway to upgrade the radar of the Eurofighter, upgrade Puma armored personnel carriers, sign a maintenance contract for NH90 helicopters and to procure telecommunication facilities for frigates and new uniforms and protective equipment.

Germany sharply curtailed military spending after the end of the Cold War, but began boosting spending again after Russia’s annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine in 2014.

Germany’s armed forces are due to get seven rescue helicopters too.

Furthermore as we have previously reported, the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) has a requirement to field a replacement for its fleet of 90 Tornado IDS (Interdiction Strike) and ECR aircraft starting from 2025 to enable a smooth transition into the retirement of the Tornado in about 2030. The German government stated that its preferred choice is to procure additional Eurofighter Typhoons, but the Super Hornet is on the list of preferred alternatives along with Boeing’s F-15 Advanced Eagle and Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).

Photo credit: Cpl. Michael Petersheim / U.S. Marine Corps


Share this article

Dario Leone

Dario Leone

Dario Leone is an aviation, defense and military writer. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviation Geek Club” one of the world’s most read military aviation blogs. His writing has appeared in The National Interest and other news media. He has reported from Europe and flown Super Puma and Cougar helicopters with the Swiss Air Force.

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Share this article


Share this article
Share this article

Always up to date! News and offers delivered directly to you!

Get the best aviation news, stories and features from The Aviation Geek Club in our newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.



    Share this article
    Back to top
    My Agile Privacy
    This website uses technical and profiling cookies. Clicking on "Accept" authorises all profiling cookies. Clicking on "Refuse" or the X will refuse all profiling cookies. By clicking on "Customise" you can select which profiling cookies to activate.
    Warning: some page functionalities could not work due to your privacy choices