On April 21, Kenya Air Force (KAF) commissioned the newly acquired C-145 Skytruck light twin engine aircraft. The event was presided over by the Commander Kenya Air Force (KAF) Major General Francis Ogolla at Moi Air Base (MAB), Eastleigh. The C-145 Skytruck which is intended to phase out the Y-12 aircrafts, was acquired through Excess Defence Article(EDA) after the signing of the Kenya United States Liason Office (KUSLO) agreement by the two Governments on 4 April 2017.
In August 2016 the United States allocated three surplus C-145As to Kenya, after it had requested six under the Excess Defense Articles (EDA) programme. The EDA database lists three aircraft delivered to Kenya. From September 2019, Kenya Air Force pilots and loadmasters underwent training on the C-145 at Hulburt Field, Florida. They were trained by airmen from the US Air Force’s 818th Mobility Support Advisory Squadron and 492d Special Operations Wing.
The C-145 is the U.S. Air Force designation for the PZL Mielec M28. The Skytruck is a Polish STOL light cargo and passenger plane, produced by PZL Mielec, as a development of license-built Antonov An-28s. C-145 Skytruck is a development variant with redesigned fuselage and wings, new Pratt & Whitney Canada engines, new avionics, 5-blade rotors, and some other minor changes. C-145A is a Variant flown by U.S. Air Force Special Operations Warfare Center.
U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) acquired 18 C-145A Skytruck/Combat Coyotes, which entered service from 2009, being acquired through Sierra Nevada Corporation, which prepares the aircraft for their specific roles prior to delivery. The Skytrucks are flown in locations across the globe performing infiltration, exfiltration, resupply and other missions as well as foreign air force training.
