Indonesia has taken delivery of two Airbus Military C295 transport aircraft ordered in February this year. The aircraft are the first of nine to be delivered to the Indonesian Ministry of Defence under the terms of a contract signed by Airbus Military and PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PT DI).
The delivery took place in the Airbus Military San Pablo site in Seville, where the C295 final assembly line is located, at a ceremony attended by the Indonesian Vice Minister of Defence, Lt. Gen. (ret) Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, and Airbus Military Vice President Head of Programmes Light & Medium and Derivatives, Rafael Tentor.
The aircraft will be operated by the Indonesian Air Force and known in service as the CN295. It will perform a wide variety of roles including military, logistical, humanitarian and medical evacuation missions throughout the huge territory of Indonesia, which includes around 17,000 islands. The delivery of the ninth and last aircraft ordered is scheduled for summer 2014.
Rafael Tentor said: “The delivery of these aircraft is an important step in Airbus Military´s collaboration with the Indonesian aerospace industry and we greatly look forward to increasing our level of co-operation in the years ahead.”
To date, Airbus Military has sold 114 C295s. After the entry in service of these aircraft there will be 88 C295s in operation in 15 countries all over the world.
The new generation C295 is the ideal aircraft for defence and civic mission to the benefit of society, such as humanitarian actions, maritime patrol, and environmental surveillance missions, amongst others. Thanks to its robustness and reliability, and with simple systems, this medium sized tactical airlifter provides wide versatility and flexibility, necessary for personnel, troop and bulky/palletized cargo transportation, casualty evacuation, communication and logistic duties or certified air-dropping capabilities.
Its mix of dual technology civil/military equipment ensure success on demanding tactical mission, growth potential for future equipment as well as compatibility with the latest civil airspace environment. The C295 is part of Airbus Military’s family of light and medium airlifters which also include the smaller C212 and CN235 platforms.