CN295 on ASEAN tour to show its capabilities and efficiency

Published May 21, 2013 | By Rob Vogelaar

A CN295 military transport aircraft of the Indonesian Ministry of Defense will be making a tour around six ASEAN countries to promote the capabilities and efficiency of the transport aircraft that PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) and Airbus Military are producing jointly. The aircraft will make visits to Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar and Malaysia between 22nd and 31st of May.

The C295, denominated CN295 in the Indonesian Ministry of Defense, is a medium-sized multirole airlifter for both civic and military use. The tour, organized by the Indonesian Ministry of Defense, PTDI and Airbus Military, and led by Vice Minister Sjafrie Sjamsuddien, will showcase the benefits of the aircraft which is optimally suited for the wide range of humanitarian and defence tasks that ASEAN Governments need to cover.These missions include military transport, emergency response and medical evacuation, search and rescue, maritime patrol, or even more complex missions such as anti-submarine warfare or electronic surveillance missions.

The visits will also allow explanations on the specific capabilities of the CN235 and the NC212i, an upgraded version of the C212 launched in November 2012 between PTDI and Airbus Military with new avionics and autopilot systems as well as an increased passenger seating, increasing its cost efficiency significantly.

The Indonesia Air Force currently has two CN295s in operation out of the nine units ordered from PTDI. By 2015, all of the nine units will be in service in Indonesia, with deliveries to the Indonesian Ministry of Defense taking place from the delivery centre and a final assembly line that Airbus Military and PTDI are setting up in Bandung, Indonesia, as a direct result of PTDI’s and Airbus Military’s Strategic Partnership signed in 2011.

In total, over 120 C295s have been ordered world-wide from Airbus Military and currently almost 100 are in operation with countries such as Algeria, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Finland, Ghana, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Poland, Portugal and Spain.

Meanwhile, the CN235 and NC212, with sales of over 270 and 470 respectively, are operating successfully in over 30 countries in the world. The operators of CN295, CN235 and NC212 are extremely satisfied with the reliability, capability, and robustness of the aircraft, which are extremely easy to operate even in hostile and difficult environments. As a result, the aircraft currently have the clear leadership in this segment.