Alenia Aeronautica, ROME: Alenia Aeronautica, a Finmeccanica company, has delivered the third C-27J tactical transport aircraft to the Italian Air Force. The ItAF have ordered 12 of the twin-engine aircraft, seven of which will be in service by the year end.
Currently, there are 12 C-27Js operational with three air forces: eight in Greece, three in Italy and one in Lithuania.
As of today, the C-27J fleet in service with the three armed forces has performed a total of about 1800 flights, has achieved an excellent level of operational availability with an operational readiness rate above 80%. In March 2007 the C-27J fleet in service with the Italian Air Force and Lithuanian Air Force achieved an operational readiness rate of 100%. In addition, the aircraft has been used in complex operational scenarios in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The C-27J production program envisages the delivery of two aircraft in September, one for Greece and one for Italy; one for Bulgaria in October; one for Italy in November; and, two aircraft for Italy in December for a total of 18 airplanes in service by the year end.
110 C-27Js have been ordered so far by six different air forces (Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Lithuania, U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force). In addition, the aircraft was selected by Romania, which is expected to sign an order for 7 aircraft within the next few weeks.
The aircraft is under evaluation by many of the world’s air forces. In Canada, for instance, it fully meets the requirement for the replacement of the current twin-engine Buffalos and of the four-engine C-130s used for search & rescue missions. Among other countries interested in the aircraft, the C-27J has been formally evaluated by the air forces of Australia, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia.
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