Alenia Aermacchi Delivers First C-27J Transport Aircraft To Australia

Alenia Aermacchi has delivered the first of 10 C-27J Spartan tactical medium-loft transport aircraft to Royal Australian Air Force.

"The C-27J Spartan will complement the C-130J Hercules and C-17A Globemaster," Air Marshal Geoff Brown, Chief of the Air Force was quoted as saying by UPI on Tuesday.

"The aircraft will support humanitarian missions and battlefield airlift in remote locations and unprepared airstrips", the Air Marshal said.

"Under Plan Jericho, the plan to transform Air Force into a 5th generation fighting force for the information age, the C-27J will operate within an integrated system that is more agile, has an extended reach and gathers and distributes information quicker and more efficiently than ever before." Brown added.

The aircraft was received in a special ceremony at RAAF Base Richmond, the base in New South Wales that will be one of two homes for Australia's Spartan fleet.

The C-27J has a top speed of 374 miles per hour and a range of 1,151 miles with 22,000 pounds of payload. It features missile warning systems, electronic self-protection, secure communications and battlefield armor.

The RAAF expects the C-27J fleet to gain Initial Operational Capability late next year.