The Kenya Defense Forces (Air Force) will now be operating all of its three C-27J Spartan Tactical Military Transport Aircraft (TMAT) it had ordered from Italy’s Leonardo.
Military sources indicate that Leonardo delivered the final Spartan transport plane ordered by the Kenya Air Force, after the tactical transport aircraft spent several months stuck in Italy due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The final aircraft resumed test flights in Italy in May and arrived in Kenya at the beginning of October, where it was handed over in an official ceremony on 2 October attended by Kenya Air Force Chiefs and the Italian Ambassador, Alberto Pieri, according to the Italian Embassy in Kenya.
Kenya received first two C-27J aircraft from Italy’s Leonardo on Jan 30 this year when they (registration 224 and 222) arrived at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
The first Kenyan C-27J was spotted at Leonardo’s facility in Turin, Italy, in September 2018, with another seen in September 2019 during an open day at Turin hosted by Leonardo.
The C-27J Spartans will highly likely replace its de Havilland Canada DHC-5 Buffalos.
Kenya is the fourth African nation to order the C-27J after Morocco, Chad and Zambia. Other customers include the Air Forces of Italy, Greece, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Romania, United States, Mexico, Australia, Peru and Slovakia.
The KDF 3 C-27J Spartan Tactical Military Transport Aircraft roles will include troop and materials transport, medical evacuation, paratroops and cargo loads airdrops, search and rescue (SAR), logistic supply, humanitarian support, firefighting and support for civil emergency operations.
Finally, the tactical military aircraft will boost also Kenya Defense Forces aviation capacity as the country continues to take on the Al-Qaeda aligned Al-Shabaab.
In Brief: C-27J Spartan Capabilities
The C-27J Spartan offers the ability to carry up to 60 troops in high density configuration and a maximum of 46 paratroopers. In the medical role 36 stretchers and six attendants can be carried. Normal payload is 9 000 kg for the C-27J, although maximum payload can go to more than 10 tons.
According to Leonardo Company, the KDF C-27J Spartan Tactical Military Transport Aircraft, the two AE2100-D2/D2A engines are rated at 4,637 SHP each. To increase safety and reliability, the avionics architecture is fully redundant and guarantees excellent performance and low pilot workload in whatever environmental condition and all operational theaters. Optional systems include air-to-air refueling, self-protection and head-up displays.
