Turkey is to donate 34 Cessna T-37 Tweet jet trainers/light attack aircraft to Pakistan in an agreement signed on 28 October.

The decision followed high-level military talks between the two countries in Ankara, where Turkey agreed to supply the aircraft plus spares “gratis” to Islamabad.

Gen Naveed Ahmed, director general of defence procurement for Pakistan, signed the agreement with Maj Gen Serdar Gulbas, the Turkish chief of logistics.

Pakistan already operates 18 T-37s that entered service in June this year, and the only other current operator of the T-37 is the Colombian air force, Flightglobal’s Fleets Analyzer database shows.

Turkey's air force retired the T-37s in around 2009, replacing them with 40 Korea Aerospace Industries KT-1 trainers that were delivered this year. An additional 15 examples are covered by a letter of intent.

T-37 pair - Turkish air force

Turkish air force

Meanwhile, the Pakistani air force is offering two Lockheed Martin C-130 transports to help deliver aid to Chitral following an earthquake on Monday, as well as airlifting injured people away from the area.

Pakistan operates 15 ex-US Air Force C-130s plus one former Pakistan International Airlines-operated L-100, Fleets Analyzer shows, with an average fleet age of some 50 years.

Source: FlightGlobal.com