Leonardo has signed a multi-year contract with the Italian National Armaments Directorate to provide logistics support for the Italian Air Force’s fleet of C-27J Spartan tactical transport aircraft and for the full-motion simulator of the International Training Centre (ITC) at the air base in Pisa, headquarters of the 46th Air Brigade.
The contract will run from 2026 to 2028 under a performance-based model, ensuring high levels of efficiency for the Italian Air Force’s fleet of 12 C-27Js operating out of the bases at Pisa and Pratica di Mare (Rome). During the same period Leonardo will provide technical and administrative management services for operations at the ITC in Pisa and, above all, technical and maintenance support services for the ITC’s flight simulator.
The C-27J is operated by 19 air forces, with the worldwide Spartan fleet racking up 275,000 flight hours, according to Leonardo.
The twin-engined C-27J, which was designed as an upgraded version of the Alenia G.222 featuring the glass cockpit of the C-130J, first flew on 24 September 1999 and began operations with the Italian Air Force in January 2007.
The Spartan has five basic configurations that can be produced using standard kits – cargo transport, troop transport, medical evacuation, cargo raid, parachute raid – as well as six optional configurations requiring additional modules or equipment: VIP transportation, passenger transportation, special medevac, biocontainment, and basic and advanced firefighting.
