ESTONIAN AIR FORCE TO RECEIVE TWO SHERPA C-23B+ LIGHT TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT FROM U.S.
TALLINN - The U.S. plans to donate two Sherpa C-23B+ light transport aircraft to the Estonian Air Force in 2015. The two 'new' aircraft will be swapped with the Estonian Air Force's two aging Soviet-legacy Antonov An-2s. Built in the U.K. and like the An-2s designed to land on soft surfaces, the Sherpa C-23B+ has a low operating cost - perfect for a military whose total budget is just over $500 million.
The Estonian Air Force uses its An-2s for artillery observation, practice for ground-based anti-air units, observation missions, transporting parachutists and other personnel, and medical evacuation. The Sherpa's will serve the same mission types.
Estonia previously had drafted plans to add a tactical transport capability under its previous Long-Term Defense Plan 2009-2018 (Plan 2018). But those plans were abandoned shortly after the document was drafted due to the severe economic crisis the country suffered through in 2009. Instead an updated version of the long-term defense plan (National Defense Development Plan 2013-2022) was published and made no mention of a rotorcraft solution to fill the tactical transport role, thus the requirement appears to have quietly faded from the Defense Ministry's focus. One option may be for Estonia to coordinate with fellow Baltic partners Latvia and Lithuania to meet the requirement with Estonia's Amari Air Base serving as the maintenance and basing center.
Source: Estonian Public Broadcasting
Associated URL:
http://news.err.ee/v/scitech/b9000132-0f45-4c16-99dc-b197d47507c6
Author: D. Darling, Europe Analyst
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