The Philippine air force (PAF) has formally accepted its fifth of seven Airbus Defence & Space C295 tactical transports, as well as two Turkish Aerospace T129 attack helicopters.
A ceremony to accept the three assets took place at Villamor air base near Pasay City, says the PAF.
Airbus Defence & Space notes that the PAF has used its existing C295s for a number of missions, such as humanitarian and disaster relief, including to short airstrips in remote areas. Manila signed a follow-on contract for three examples during 2021, to be used in the transport role.
The pair of T129s first arrived at Clark air base in early March, delivered aboard an Airbus Defence & Space A400M of the Turkish air force.
Including the new C295, Manila’s fixed-wing military transport fleet comprises just 12 aircraft.
These comprise the five C295s, four Lockheed Martin C-130Hs, two Indonesian Aerospace-produced NC212s, and a single Fokker F27.
In addition, another F27 and a Gulfstream G280 are earmarked for VIP transport duties.
The Philippines is the first operator of the T129 outside of Turkey.
