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KABUL, Afghanistan – The Afghan Air Force received an addition to its forces last week with the arrival of the ninth C-27A Spartan transport aircraft at the Afghan Air Force Base here.
An 11 percent increase in the number of C-27s brings the Afghan Air Force closer to its goal of 20 Spartans.
The C-27A is a twin-engine turboprop aircraft with short take-off and landing capability. The Spartan is suited for Afghanistan's mountainous terrain and limited road network.
A C-27 can carry up to 20,000 pounds (9,072 kilograms) of cargo and fuel, it can also operate on unimproved airfields as short as 3,000 feet (915 meters), which allows access to airstrips unreachable by most fixed-wing aircraft.
Seen as a key contributor to the future of the Afghan Air Force, the C-27 is phasing out the Antonov-32 transport aircraft as the centerpiece of Afghanistan’s cargo/transport mission, said Maj. Jay Troxell, a C-27 advisor with the NATO Air Training Command-Afghanistan/538th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron.
Troxell, who helped fly the aircraft from Italy to Kabul, believes the new C-27 brings value not only in bolstering the size of the Afghan Air Force’s fixed -wing assets, but it also provides a good training platform for the force’s developing pilot corps.
“It [C-27] handles well. It is definitely forgiving and easy to land, which helps for instruction,” Troxell said.
The Afghan Air Force is expected to receive its 10th C-27A Spartan in early February.
| Date Taken: | 01.28.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 01.28.2011 15:13 |
| Story ID: | 64405 |
| Location: | KABUL, AF |
| Web Views: | 53 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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