Philippines receives second and final C-130T airlifter from US

[Zarvan]

The second and final Lockheed Martin C-130T Hercules to be donated to the Philippines by the US was handed over on 24 October. Source: US DoD
The Philippines has received into service its second and final surplus Lockheed Martin C-130T Hercules transport aircraft from the United States, it was announced on 25 October.

The former US Navy aircraft, tail number 5040, was formally received by the Philippine Air Force (PAF) during a ceremony at Colonel Jesus Villamor Air Base, Pasay City, the day before. This aircraft will now join 5011, which was handed over to the PAF in April 2015, at the 220th Airlift Wing located at Brigadier General Benito N Ebuen Air Base, where it will be operated by the 222nd Airlift Squadron.

The acquisition under the US Excess Defense Article (EDA) programme of the C-130Ts is part of a wider modernisation by the PAF of its airlift capabilities to better enable it to deploy troops and to support humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR) operations. The two aircraft were acquired by Manila for about USD55 million, of which the US government paid USD20 million in Foreign Military Financing (FMF).

With this final C-130T now in place, the PAF now has a total of five C-130 aircraft composed of two C-130T, two C-130H, and one C-130B. Other fixed-wing airlift platforms fielded by the PAF comprise one Fokker F27 Friendship and one F28 Fellowship; and three Airbus Defence and Space C295s.

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