EADS Casa has won the competition to supply the Portuguese air force with new tactical transport and maritime patrol aircraft. The Spanish-built C-295 had been competing with the Alenia C-27J Spartan for the order, which is valued at around €270 million ($322 million).
The service will take seven C-295 military transports and five in VIMAR maritime surveillance configuration.
The 12 C-295s will replace Portugal’s fleet of 24 smaller EADS Casa C-212s, which have operated in a variety of transport, maritime patrol (MPA) and electronic countermeasures roles since the 1970s. They will also augment the service’s Lockheed Martin P-3P Orion MPAs.
Three of the five C-295s due to operate in the VIMAR role will carry EADS Casa’s Fully Integrated Tactical System, which incorporates radar and electro-optical sensors. The VIMAR aircraft will be capable of rapid reversion to transport configuration, says the company.
The first aircraft will be delivered 18 months from the contract coming into force, with the fleet being delivered at intervals of around one and a half months thereafter. The transport variants will be supplied first.
Source: Flight Daily News
