The Spanish government cabinet on Tuesday approved the sale of four Lockheed C-130H Hercules transport aircraft formerly operated by the Spanish Air Force (Ejército del Aire). Two aircraft will be sold to Uruguay for €22 million, and the other two will be sold to Peru for €25 million, both sales also include a spare parts package. It now seems that the deal has been sealed to obtain two former Ejercito del Aire (EdA, Spanish Air Force) C-130H aircraft for €22 million including spare parts. At this moment, only one C-130B (serial 592) is operable with the Escuadrón Aéreo N°3 Transporte (EA3T) at Montevideo-Carrasco. From the other two C-130Bs, one is stored awaiting depot-level maintenance (serial 591), and the other is dumped at Montevideo-Carrasco and sectioned (serial 593).
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medevac, and cargo transport aircraft. The versatile airframe has found uses in a variety of other roles, including as a gunship (AC-130), for airborne assault, search and rescue, scientific research support, weather reconnaissance, aerial refueling, maritime patrol, and aerial firefighting. It is now the main tactical airlifter for many military forces worldwide. More than 40 variants of the Hercules, including civilian versions marketed as the Lockheed L-100, operate in more than 60 nations.
The C-130H model has updated Allison T56-A-15 turboprops, a redesigned outer wing, updated avionics and other minor improvements. Later H models had a new, fatigue-life-improved, center wing that was retrofitted to many earlier H-models. For structural reasons, some models are required to land with reduced amounts of fuel when carrying heavy cargo, reducing usable range.[13] The H model remains in widespread use with the United States Air Force (USAF) and many foreign air forces. Initial deliveries began in 1964 (to the RNZAF), remaining in production until 1996. An improved C-130H was introduced in 1974, with Australia purchasing 12 of type in 1978 to replace the original 12 C-130A models, which had first entered Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) service in 1958.
