Lockheed Martin has rolled out its first MC-130J Combat Shadow II for the US Air Force Special Operations Command, with the type to achieve initial operational capability next year.
Performed at Lockheed's Marietta production site in Georgia on 29 March, the milestone came around five months before the company will deliver its first of at least 15 of the combat tankers.
Hailing the combination of new sensors, expanded avionics and a universal aerial refuelling receptacle slipway installation, AFSOC commander Lt Gen Donald Wurster says the MC-130J's "multi-mission capabilities will increase the combat performance of special operations forces worldwide".
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Lockheed is under contract to build 15 MC-130Js, but the USAF's total requirement is for an eventual fleet of 37 new-generation aircraft to replace its current MC-130E/Ps.
The first MC-130J will be delivered during August, along with the USAF Air Combat Command's first HC-130J personnel recovery aircraft. Developmental testing of the latter variant concluded on 14 March, with the successful use of its new refuelling receptacle slipway installation while flying behind a boom-equipped Boeing KC-135 tanker from the Ohio Air National Guard.
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Source: Flight International
