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http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #362 MAY 2018 // 29

Indonesia to acquire two A400Ms

INDONESIA PLANS to

buy two A400M airlifters

to be operated by Tentara

Nasional Indonesia

Angkatan Udara (TNI AU,

Indonesian Air Force) air

and ground crew on behalf

of the state-owned PT

Perusahaan Perdagangan

Indonesia (PPI, Indonesian

Trading Company) to

distribute goods in the

east of the country.

The TNI AU announced the

proposal on March 7 during

a visit by PPI Director Agus

Andiyani to the air force’s

Kasau workshop in Jakarta.

Air Chief Marshal Yuyu

Sutisna, chief of staff of the

TNI AU, said the service

was ready and willing to

contribute its personnel to

maintain and operate the

two aircraft, which will be

purchased by the Ministry of

State-Owned Enterprises.

PPI’s primary business

is the import, export and

distribution of consumer

goods and industrial

products throughout

Indonesia. Using the

A400Ms will reportedly

improve availability and

reduce prices in the

country’s remote eastern

regions, which are only

easily accessible by

air. Dave Allport

Afghan

AC-208

contract

award

ORBITAL ATK of Texas

has won a contract for

the Afghan Air Force

(AAF) Cessna AC-208

Eliminator armed

intelligence, surveillance

and reconnaissance (ISR)

aircraft requirement.

The US Air Force’s

645th Aeronautical

Systems Group awarded

the $86.4m firm-fixed-

price contract to the

Fort Worth-based

company on March 8.

An initial $42.3m from

Afghan security forces

funds was released at

the time. Work on the

aircraft at Fort Worth is

expected to be complete

by June 9 next year.

The announcement did

not specify the number

of aircraft involved, but a

notice placed on the US

Government’s Federal

Business Opportunities

website on December

27 indicated that seven

Cessna 208B Grand

Caravans will be converted

to armed ISR configuration

• see Afghanistan launch
  customer for AC-208
  Eliminator, March, p29.
  Orbital ATK also won
  an AC-208 contract for
  the AAF requirement on
  September 1. The $69.3m
  deal – for which $33.9m
  from Afghan security
  forces funds has been
  released – is due to be
  completed by November
  30 this year. Further
  details were not revealed
  and it remains unclear
  exactly how many aircraft
  were covered by this
  contract. Dave Allport

First fl ight for South Korean F-35A

THE REPUBLIC of Korea Air

Force (ROKAF)’s first F-35A

made its maiden flight at

Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth

production facility in Texas

on March 19, followed by

a second two days later.

The jet, serial 18-001

(AW-01) is the first of 40

F-35A conventional take-off

and landing (CTOL) variants

scheduled for delivery to

the ROKAF by 2021.

At a rollout ceremony at

Fort Worth on March 28,

South Korean defence

minister Song Young-moo

said in a pre-recorded

message: “The deployment

of the F-35 will serve as

momentum to enhance

the combined operations

of the ROK-US Air Forces,

and advance ROKAF’s

support capabilities for

ground operations.”

The aircraft is the first

of six F-35As due to be

delivered to South Korea

this year. The country plans

to have 40 of the type, to be

built in Fort Worth, Texas.

The first will be delivered

to Luke Air Force Base,

Arizona, where ROKAF

pilots and maintainers will

begin training. F-35s will

arrive in South Korea next

year and will initially be

deployed at Cheongju.

F-35A 18-001 on its fi rst fl ight, as ‘Lightning 41’, with F-35 chief test pilot and test fl ight director Alan Norman at the controls. The company’s F-16D 90-0848

is fl ying chase. Henry B Ham

Final three ex-Japanese TC-90s delivered to Philippines

Above: TC-90 King Air 6825 arrives at Sangley Point on March 26. Philippine Navy

JAPAN’S DEFENCE ministry

has handed over the final

three ex-Japan Maritime

Self-Defense Force (JMSDF)

Beechcraft TC-90 King Airs

to the Philippine Navy.

The aircraft, 6825 (c/n

LJ-1337), 6826 (c/n LJ-1338)

and 6827 (c/n LJ-1339), still

wearing JMSDF colours

and serials, flew to Sangley

Point, Cavite City, on

March 26 before taking

part in a transfer ceremony

at the headquarters of

the Philippine Naval

Air Group (NAG).

The King Airs had

previously been based at

Tokushima, operated by

the JMSDF’s 202 Kyoiku/

Kyoiku Kokugun Tokushima.

As previously reported,

Japan is donating five

TC-90s to the Philippines,

the first of which, 6822 (c/n

LJ-1146) and 6824 (c/n

LJ-1336), arrived at Sangley

Point on March 27 last

year – see TC-90s arrive in

Philippines, June 2017, p28.

After modification with

various sensors, repainting

and having Philippine serial

390 applied, the first of

the pair entered service on

November 21 – see First

Philippine Navy King Air

inducted, January, p29.

After similar work, the

second aircraft, serial 392,

formally entered service

on March 19 at Sangley

Point. Dave Allport