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According to Alenia Aeronautica’s India
director Roberto Leva, his company was responding
with information about C 27J Spartan, which he
described as “the new generation medium military
airlifter’s category” capable of taking
off from unprepared strips “less than 500
metre long with maximum takeoff weight of 30,500
kg.”
He told newmen that the Spartan can be used both
for civilian and military purposes and would be
particularly suitable for India’s hilly northeastern
states.
 Paolo
Girasole, head of Alenia parent company Finmeccanica
in India, said that India could be a market for
some 50 C 27Js, given the requirement to reach
in difficult terrains with quick landings and
getaways. The Border security force (BSF) had
already issued a Request for Proposals (RfP) for
two aircraft and trials were held last year in
July in Bangalore and Leh.
Leva pointed out that an advantage of the aircraft
was that it had the same Rolls Royce engines as
the Lockheed martin C 130J which India is buying,
and that the two aircraft complimented each other.
Both of them are configured to carry pallets weighing
up to 4,700 kg and high up to 2.2 metres.
So, he added, operationally and in terms of maintenance,
the acquisition of this aircraft would be cost-effective.
Leva said that Alenia Aeronautica is excited
about the prospects of entering the Indian defence
and security market, and that the C 27J is capable
of performing a range of missions – transport
of troops, goods and medicines, logistic, re-supply,
medical evacuation, airdrop operations, paratroopers
launch, search and rescue, fire-fighting, humanitarian
assistance and missions in support of homeland
security.
The twin-engine turboprop has state-of-the-art
avionics, propulsion and systems with three distinctive
features – Self-deployment, Survivability
and Interoperability.
Besides the BSF, the company is optimistic that
the aircraft can be of use to the Central Reserve
Police Force (CRPF) as well as the National Security
Guard (NSG) as a potential customer.
For instance, Leva said the aircraft is designed
to operate in remote areas like those in Jammu
and Kashmir and the North-East from gravel or
sand. The aircraft has the ability to do so since
besides the twin-engines it has an auxiliary power
unit (APU) that provides electricity and maintains
pressure without the need to keep the engines
running when the aircraft is on ground.
The APU also gives the aircraft power to load
mission kits.
The underlying philosophy is mission accomplishment
and critical equipment is protected taking into
account that the aircraft could come under attack
while carrying out any of the multiple missions
it can perform. The cockpit is armoured with ballistic
proof ceramic that also protects critical equipment
like oxygen tanks.
So much so, the design takes care to have two
independent hydraulic systems, one on each side,
so that if one side is damaged, the other can
operate even with the help of the APU. A technology
has been employed which prevents the fuel tanks
from exploding even after being hit by bullets.
The aircraft has the ability to manoeuvre up to
3G.
As for interoperability, Leva said the C-27J
Spartan compliments the C 130J Super Hercules
produced by the Lockheed Martin since both aircraft
use the standard 436L pallets. The advantage being
that these pallets can be down/ uploaded from
either plane.
He said that US Air Force is among the seven
air forces of the world that have ordered the
C 27J. The US has awarded a $ 2.04 billion contract
for 78 aircraft to be shipped to the US Army and
Air Force within the bid for the Joint Cargo Aircraft
programme.
The JCA is a key element for the transformation
of the transport fleet of the US Army and the
US Air Force to meet the new operational requirements
with multirole and interoperable aircraft able
to perform logistical re-supply troop and humanitarian
assistance.
 As
an example, he said, pallets with relief or logistic
material could be loaded on to the C130J Hercules
and off-loaded and then re-loaded within a short
period of time with the same pallets onto the
Spartan, which can deliver it to areas where the
bigger plane cannot land. The US realised it would
require such an aircraft after hurricane Katrina
when it could not reach some areas or evacuate
people from there.
In its air ambulance role, the C 27J can accommodate
up to 36 stretchers with each having its own oxygen
point, a facility also available to the 46 paratroopers
its can carry. It is capable of taking off from
and landing on unprepared strips, less than 500
metres long, with maximum take-off weight of 30,500
kgs. It can carry 60 fully equipped soldiers.
It can transport fighter and transport aircraft
engines such as for the C-130, the Eurofighter
Typhoon, the F-16 and Mirage-2000 directly on
their normal engine dollies without further special
equipment.
At present, besides the US, the C-27 J has been
ordered by the air forces of Italy, Greece, Bulgaria,
Lithuania, Romania, Morocco. Slovakia has also
selected the aircraft.
Lithuania got its first aircraft in December
2006 and it has been put to extensive use to support
the country’s troops in Afghanistan. Morocco
is the first non-NATO customer and it ordered
four aircraft for about Euro 130 million during
September 2008.
According to Maj Jurius Jaksys, C-27J Pilot of
the Lithuanian Air Force (LTAF), the aircraft
has been landing at a dusty, semi-prepared air
strip, 6,000-feet long and at a height of 7,500
feet, at Chagcharan in Afghanistan routinely without
any problem. There are clouds always and no navigation
aids, but despite their absence, the mission computer
helps in accurate landings and takeoffs.
He also says that the aircraft is highly manoeuverable
due to its engine power. A significant factor
is the C 27J’s Auxiliary Power Unit (APU),
which allows it to operate in remote areas without
any ground support equipment. “We can get
all the necessary electrical and hydraulic power
from the aircraft even with the engines off”
and that means that the C 27J can stay on location
for a longer time if required.
Alenia Aeronatica is a Finmeccanica Company that
operates world-wide in design, development, production,
maintenance and modification of commercial and
military aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and
aerostructures. It has collaborations with SuperJet
of Russia, Boeing and L3 Communications of the
US, and BAE Systems of Britain.
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