Two important developments in the ongoing C-130J Super Hercules program were reported here yesterday by Lockheed Martin (LM, Chalet 324). An unidentified operator has ordered five LM-100Js, the commercial version; and the company has launched the C-130J-SOF version aimed at international customers requiring aircraft that are specifically configured for special operations.

The prototype LM-100J is on static display here (C2), having first flown less than a month ago on May 25. It is equivalent to a stretched C-130J-30 military version, with a 55-foot-long cargo compartment housing eight pallet positions, including one on the rear loading ramp. Its primary use will be to deliver bulk and oversize cargo, particularly into austere locations. But LM has also identified other missions, including oil spill clean-up by aerial spraying; aerial firefighting; and medical evacuation.

George Shultz, LM’s vice-president for air mobility, said that a second LM-100J would be joining the prototype in flight test. The company must obtain Supplemental Type Certification (STC) for the commercial version’s avionics, which have changed considerably since basic civil certification was achieved back in 1998. He said that the first delivery to the launch customer will follow by the end of the first quarter next year. He told AIN that this customer had requested no publicity, but that it was neither Irish operator ASL nor Brazilian company Bravo Industries, who both signed Letters of Intent for the LM-100J some time ago.

LM has been producing AC-130Js and MC-130Js for the U.S. Air Force for some years. But it has not previously offered a special mission version of the C-130J or earlier editions of the Hercules to international customers straight off the production line. Some countries have made their own modifications. Now they will be able to acquire a new C-130J-SOF from LM for about $85 million in an ISR configuration with EO/IR sensor turret, said Tony Frese, LM business development manager for air mobility. This standard offer includes doubled electrical capacity; armored protection; added crew stations; and extra external fuel tanks.

But there are multiple additional options, Frese noted. These include refueling hose and drogue; refueling receptacle; wideband datalink; Satcom; 30mm gun; Hellfire missile stations on the outer wing; and directed infrared countermeasures (DIRCM) system. Whatever the configuration, Frese said that the lead time from order to delivery for a C-130J-SOF would be 36 months.

In a veiled reference to the Airbus A400M, which has also been pitched for special missions, Frese said that “customers want a proven aircraft, and we know how to do this. Our non-swept wing makes a difference,” he added.