Jump to content

C-130 News: New Zealand military buys 5 Lockheed Hercules planes for $1B


casey
 Share

Recommended Posts

2085477778_06-05-20NZ.jpg.81dc48362978097b78611411e5f8227e.jpg

New Zealand's military said Friday it will buy five Super Hercules transport planes from Lockheed Martin for $1 billion.

The planes will replace the military's existing fleet of Hercules, all of which are more than 50 years old and have been involved in a series of embarrassing breakdowns over recent years.

Defense Minister Ron Mark said the new planes will be used for operations in New Zealand, the South Pacific and Antarctica.

“Generations of New Zealanders have grown up and grown old with the Hercules, and they know these aircraft are an essential first line of response," Mark said in a statement.

Three of the nation's current C-130 Hercules planes date back to 1965 and the other two to 1969. They have been upgraded over the years, but frequent breakdowns have hampered some high-profile missions. At one point last year, the entire fleet was temporarily grounded.

New Zealand will take delivery of the first of the new C-130J-30 aircraft in 2024 with the full fleet operating by 2025. The price tag of 1.5 billion New Zealand dollars ($1 billion) includes a flight simulator and supporting infrastructure.

View original article at thehour.com


View full article

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...