Alan Staats/PHOENIX
FALCON AEROTECH of the USA is to fly a prototype aircraft in 1996 as part of a development programme to re-engine Lockheed C-130E-Hs and L-100-30s with new Allison AE-2100Fs.
The Hamilton Aviation subsidiary claims that it already has a "tentative order" from an unnamed Middle East customer to replace the Allison T-56 with the full-authority digital engine-control-equipped AE-2100F derated from 4,560kW (6,125shp) to 3,500kW. Dowty Aerospace Propellers' R-394 six-bladed propellers are also included, mirroring the configuration installed on the new C-130J variant launched by a Royal Air Force order earlier this year.
Gordon Hamilton, president of Hamilton Aviation, says: "It makes sense for operators to upgrade aging fleets with new -J models, but there are significant numbers of low- and mid-time -E through -H models out there that our package makes sense for."
Assuming that the order is confirmed, initial work on an L-100-30 prototype starts next April, with a first flight later in the year. A civilian version is being used as the prototype to obtain US Federal Aviation Administration approval.
Hamilton and its risk-sharing partner Alsalam Aircraft, based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, will begin production of the first of the "tentatively ordered" aircraft following completion of the flight-test programme.
Alsalam will perform the retrofit and handle marketing in the Middle East and North Africa. In addition, negotiations are under way with a third partner to establish a conversion unit in the Far East.
The conversion price is $11 million per aircraft, when trade-in allowances on engines and propellers are accounted for.
Source: Flight International
