Slovenia has welcomed its first of two Leonardo C-27J Spartans, with the tactical transport having arrived at its Cerklje ob Krki air base in late December.
The NATO nation’s lead example of the twin-turboprop was ordered in November 2021, with the deal also including training and in-service support. Its contract for a second C-27J was confirmed last month, and also includes the same support services.
“The selection of the C-27J by the Slovenian Ministry of Defence fully meets a variety of operational needs in terms of transport and projection capabilities in international operations,” says Leonardo.
It notes that in addition to its military airlift duties, the winglet-equipped type will also perform “rescue, disaster relief, and fire-fighting duties”. This will include use of the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System II payload supplied by United Aeronautical of the USA.
The C-27J’s introduction provides Ljubljana with its largest military transport – Cirium fleets data used in our World Air Forces 2024 directory shows that the Slovenian air force currently operates one Aircraft Industries L-410 and two Pilatus PC-6s.
