Lockheed Martin’s C-130 programme is poised to mark its latest extraordinary milestone: 70 years since the debut flight of a first prototype.
Still in production, the Hercules was originally designed to meet requirements drawn up by the US Air Force’s (USAF’s) Tactical Air Command to support operations during the Korean War.
Following the type’s selection, the first of two YC-130 prototypes got airborne from Burbank, California on 23 August 1954, completing a roughly 1h flight to Edwards AFB. Meanwhile, the programme and production activities were relocated to Marietta, Georgia.
The first production example made its flight debut on 7 April 1955, in A-model guise, and service entry followed in December 1956.
A total of 231 C-130As were delivered, with shipments shifting to the B-version from November 1958: 230 were produced in that standard as Lockheed steadily enhanced the four-engined type’s capabilities.
SUCCESSFUL VARIANTS
Deliveries of 491 C-130Es ran from June 1961, before the company handed over 1,202 of the programme’s most-successful variant – the H – from March 1965.
In all, 2,154 aircraft – excluding the two prototypes – were produced in what are now referred to as “legacy” versions. Further to that were 112 L-100 commercial freighters delivered between 1964 and 1992.
The version still rolling off the company’s final assembly lines in Marietta is the C-130J: the ultimate standard in what is the industry’s longest-running uninterrupted military aircraft production activity.
Equipped with Rolls-Royce AE 2100D3 turboprop engines delivering 30% more power than the earlier Allison T56-A, and advanced avionics including head-up displays supporting a two-person flightdeck, the J was rolled out in October 1995 and took to the air for the first time on 5 April 1996.
Originally tagged as the Hercules II, but subsequently named the Super Hercules, the new version rolled out with only one confirmed customer behind it: the UK Royal Air Force (RAF), with a commitment for 25 examples.
Lockheed faced significant development challenges with the new model, including the need to install the distinctive ice boot “kicker” fitted at the forward base of the tail. This, in addition to the use of Dowty six-bladed propellers, was one of the main ways to visually identify the new version from its predecessors.
The first delivery of an operational C-130J was made to the RAF in September 1998, with the service eventually fielding 15 stretched-fuselage -30s and 10 short-fuselage examples. After a hard service life, including lengthy operations in Afghanistan, the UK retired the last of its assets in 2023.
In mid-June 2024, Lockheed delivered the Hercules programme’s 2,700th aircraft, and the 546th in the current production standard. A US Marine Corps (USMC) KC-130J tanker with the registration 170282, this was flown to MCAS Cherry Point in North Carolina. The 500th C-130J had been handed over in March 2022, to the USAF.
The latest milestone delivery “reflects the inherent mission and performance adaptability that fuels the C-130’s ongoing relevance”, says Rod McLean, general manager of Lockheed’s air mobility unit.
The company notes that over its lifetime, the Hercules airframe has been adapted into more than 70 variants, which have been employed in roles ranging from electronic warfare to search and rescue, close-air support, gunship, hurricane hunter and even Arctic resupply.
| Lockheed Martin C-130 production by model | ||
|---|---|---|
| Model | Number built | First delivery |
| C-130A | 231 | 1956 |
| C-130B | 230 | 1958 |
| C-130E | 491 | 1961 |
| C-130H | 1,202 | 1965 |
| C-130J | 546 | 1998 |
| Total | 2,700 | |
| Source: Lockheed Martin Notes: Excludes 117 L-100/LM-100Js and two prototypes | ||
Our analysis of Cirium fleets data shows that 55% of the current 1,122-strong C-130A-J fleet – or 616 aircraft – is made up of legacy versions: six As, 39 Bs, 40 Es and 531 Hs. Aged 67 years, the oldest platform still flying is an A-model owned by International Air Response of the USA. A 65-year-old Turkish air force C-130B is the earliest example in active use with a military operator.
FLEET FACTORS
Meanwhile, some 506 active J-model aircraft represent 45% of the total fleet.
The US military accounts for 48% of all legacy and J-model Hercules in use, with the USAF having 460, the USMC 73, and the US Navy 35. Additionally, 25 are operated by the US Coast Guard.
Separate to our analysis, there are still 43 commercial L-100/LM-100J aircraft in use.
Cirium data shows that the five current leading international users of the C-130 are the air forces of Saudi Arabia (44), Canada (29), Indonesia (29), Iran (28 examples supplied before the Islamic revolution of 1978-1979), and Egypt (26).
In terms of current production, Lockheed is on a path towards reducing annual output of the C-130J from 24 to 20 units. This is largely due to the USAF nearing the completion of its purchases of the type for use by the Air National Guard and Reserve; it already has finished the recapitalisation process for active duty units.
With a third multi-year procurement arrangement with the US Department of Defense having concluded, the airframer is now working towards agreeing a fourth such deal.
“That will focus heavily on [US] navy aircraft,” says Larry Gallogly, Lockheed’s director, customer requirements for air mobility and maritime missions. The service is seeking to replace its aged KC-130T tankers, and potentially also could acquire J-model aircraft to perform TACAMO – or ‘take charge and move out’ – nuclear command missions, which are currently conducted using Boeing 707-based E-6Bs.
Production for export buyers also continues, with aircraft now on contract for New Zealand (5) and the Philippines (3), and talks advancing to finalise a 20-unit Foreign Military Sales deal for Australia – which already flies 12 Js.
“There is robust demand from the US government and our international customers. We see very strong demand throughout Europe and Asia for replacing their current airlift fleets with C-130Js,” Gallogly says. “We see production well into the latter part of the next decade.”
One near-term opportunity is in Sweden. Lockheed is hoping for a decision from Stockholm later this year on replacing its veteran C/KC-130H fleet, with Embraer’s C/KC-390 twinjet also in contention.
“We have provided all of the information that we can to support Sweden’s decision, and are awaiting their decision,” he says. Its neighbour and fellow recent NATO entrant Finland, plus Greece, also are among those nations currently assessing their tactical airlift requirements.
Lockheed recently delivered its final Hercules under a six-aircraft order for the German air force, which has taken three aircraft each in the tactical transport and KC-130J tanker standards. The assets are now operational as part of a joint unit with the French air force at Evreux air base: Paris also has two of each version.
While the nations have no stated requirement to purchase more of the type, Gallogly says: “We would love to see them expand their fleet.
“Both have expressed how well it has gone,” he told FlightGlobal at the ILA Berlin air show on 6 June, where the Luftwaffe had one of its KC-130Js in the static display.
After its slow start, Gallogly notes that 26 operators in 22 nations now fly the J-model Hercules, with the global fleet having amassed nearly 3 million flying hours. Deliveries are now being made in the Block 8.1 operating standard.
“The aircraft evolves constantly. What I was flying in the ’80s and ’90s doesn’t resemble at all what I was flying when I started on the J in 2001. The innovation has just been spectacular, and that’s not stopping. The aircraft continues to evolve, to meet the challenges of tomorrow’s battlespace,” he says.
“We have the most robust database for the [US] air force, and looking at three years of their data, the J-model handled 99% of all their tactical airlift missions,” he says. “That tells us the airplane is sized appropriately: its capabilities are appropriate for moving the things that need to be moved.”
Gallogly also points to the Hercules’ proven ability in supporting the USAF’s so-called Agile Combat Employment concept for deploying fighters to road strips: a practice also now being reintroduced or trialled by multiple other nations.
“Everybody likes to see the fighter land on the roadway, but there are always two C-130s parked on the side of the road that will provide fuel and munitions to upload,” he notes.
Meanwhile, without directly referencing the rival C/KC-390, Gallogly claims that the four-engined C-130J has significant operational advantages.
“We move the equipment a lot further and burn a lot less fuel than a two-engined jet airlifter,” he says. “That [jet] speed does come at a significant cost.”
And referencing campaigns and discussions in countries like Finland and Sweden, he adds: “The carbon footprint of the aircraft seems to be more and more important to these nations as they try to meet [emission reduction] targets in the future.”
EVOLVED REQUIREMENTS
Asked what might eventually follow the Hercules, Gallogly says: “What will be the requirement for tactical airlift? We are convinced that a J in some form could meet that requirement, but we will have to look at all the potential of what the next evolution might look like.
“Is it a piloted aircraft, is it a single-pilot aircraft, what type of autonomy do you have to enable that? And we are spending a lot of time in the area of connectivity, because we believe that connectivity for large aircraft is the key to survivability.”
As with its original design for the YC-130 submitted to the potential customer in 1951, the company’s development plans will be influenced primarily by the USAF’s operating needs. But with its Marietta site still turning out C-130Js, the venerable Hercules is sure to still be delivering the goods when the centenary of its first flight falls 30 years from now.
Freight expectations for commercial derivative but weak sales halt LM-100J
Like any airframer, Lockheed Martin does not get it right every single time, with its LM-100J commercial derivative of the Super Hercules having been quietly parked after poor sales.
First flown in May 2017 and having secured type certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration in November 2019, the model has a maximum payload of 19,800kg (43,700lb). It was touted as a new-generation replacement for freighters including the L-100, and a ‘FireHerc’ derivative was also proposed for dedicated firefighting duties.
Only five LM-100Js are in operation: all with US-based Pallas Aviation. Two earlier production slots were instead converted to J-model airlifters for the Algerian air force.
No further orders for the commercial model have been secured, with Cirium data recording a combined 20 cancellations by South Africa’s Safair and proposed Brazilian start-up Bravo Cargas, which failed to launch operations.
“We haven’t had follow-on customers for the commercial variant,” says Larry Gallogly, Lockheed’s director, customer requirements for air mobility and maritime missions. “We don’t see a robust marketplace for it right now, so we have put it on the backburner, so to speak.”
