Indonesia has signed a memorandum of understanding with Australia to acquire five Lockheed Martin C-130H Hercules tactical transports and associated equipment.
The sale is in addition to the four surplus aircraft that Australia is in the process of transferring to Indonesia, says the country's defence minister Stephen Smith, and includes a support equipment package.
"During my visit to Jakarta in April this year, I confirmed that the Australian government was willing to sell five C-130H aircraft, along with a simulator and spare parts, to Indonesia at a discounted rate," says Smith.
A source familiar with the deal says that Jakarta will pay only A$15 million ($13.9 million) for the whole package.
"Australia is pleased to continue to assist the development of Indonesia's airlift capability, which will support humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations," Smith adds.
Three of the four Hercules that Australia has given Indonesia are undergoing maintenance with Qantas Defence Services at the Royal Australian Air Force's Richmond base in New South Wales. All four will be delivered by October 2014. The RAAF retired its last H-model Hercules in November 2012, following a service lift spanning 34 years.
Flightglobal's Ascend Online Fleets database shows that Jakarta has an active fleet of 15 C-130s, including B- and H-model examples, and four commercial L-100 variants.
Source: Flight International
