Alenia C - 27J Spartan The Alenia C - 27J Spartan is a medium - sized military transport aircraft . The C - 27J is an advanced derivative of Alenia Aeronautica ' s G . 222 ( C - 27A Spartan in U . S . service ) , with the engines and systems of the Lockheed Martin C - 130J Super Hercules . The aircraft was selected as the Joint Cargo Aircraft ( JCA ) for the United States military , for which L3 is the prime contractor . The C - 27J has also been ordered by the military air units of Australia , Italy , Greece , Bulgaria , Lithuania , Mexico , Morocco and Romania . Design and development . In 1995 , Alenia and Lockheed Martin began discussions to improve Alenia ' s G . 222 using C - 130J ' s glass cockpit and a more powerful version of the G . 222 ' s T64G engine and four - blade propellers . The companies began a program for the improved G . 222 , named C - 27J in 1996 . This was a U . S . military type designation based on the G . 222 ' s C - 27A U . S . designation . Then the design was changed to use the C - 130J Super Hercules ' s Rolls - Royce AE 2100 engine and six - blade propeller . Alenia and Lockheed Martin formed " Lockheed Martin Alenia Tactical Transport Systems " ( LMATTS ) for the development of C - 27J in 1997 . The C - 27J has a 35 % increase in range and a 15 % faster cruise speed than the G . 222 . By 2005 , the U . S . Army had identified the need to replace its aging C - 23 Sherpa lifter . The Sherpa ' s performance was inadequate in the hot , high terrain of Southwest Asia . In lieu of adequate fixed - wing airlift availability , the U . S . Army ' s CH - 47 helicopter fleet was being worked hard to fill the " last tactical mile " transporting supplies to forward located troops . The C - 27J was intended by the U . S . Army to give " Direct Support " capability , and reduce the stress on their CH - 47 fleet . The LMATTS joint venture was later dissolved when Lockheed Martin chose to offer the C - 130J in 2006 as a contender in the same U . S . Army and U . S . Air Force Joint Cargo Aircraft ( JCA ) competition in which the C - 27J was competing . Alenia Aeronautica then paired with L - 3 Communications to form the Global Military Aircraft Systems ( GMAS ) joint venture to market the C - 27J . Boeing later joined Alenia and L - 3 Communications as a GMAS team member . The GMAS team bid the C - 27J in the Joint Cargo Aircraft competition against Raytheon and EADS North America ' s C - 295 . Both the U . S . Army and Air Force JCA orders combined are expected to top 100 aircraft . The JCA will eventually replace the existing Short C - 23 Sherpa , Beechcraft C - 12 Huron and Fairchild C - 26 Metroliner s in the Army National Guard , and will become a substitute tactical airlift platform for those Air National Guard airlift groups or airlift wings losing C - 130 aircraft to retirement or Base Realignment and Closure ( BRAC ) action redistribution of aircraft ( C - 130H / C - 130J ) . The C - 27J completed the U . S . Department of Defense ' s Early User Survey evaluations by November 2006 , flying 26 hours and surpassing all the JCA program requirements . The GMAS team also announced that the C - 27J will be assembled at a facility at Cecil Field , Duval County , Florida . While the final selection of the JCA was expected to be announced in March 2007 , the decision came on 13 June 2007 , when the Pentagon selected the C - 27J as its Joint Cargo Aircraft . A contract worth US $ 2 . 04 billion was awarded to the L - 3 Communications team for 78 C - 27Js along with training and support on 13 June 2007 . At this time , the U . S . Army had requirement for up to 75 aircraft in the Army National Guard ; the Air Force had a requirement for up to 70 aircraft in the Air Force Special Operations Command and the Air National Guard . On 22 June 2007 , Raytheon formally protested the award of the JCA contract to the Alenia C - 27J . On 27 September 2007 , the GAO announced that it had denied Raytheon ’ s protest , thereby allowing the Pentagon to go ahead with the C - 27J procurement . Prior to Raytheon ' s protest , the first C - 27J aircraft were to begin delivery to the joint U . S . Army - Air Force test and training program in June 2008 . The first flight of a U . S . C - 27J occurred on 17 June 2008 . Romania ordered seven C - 27Js for delivery from 2008 to replace Antonov An - 24 and Antonov An - 26 aircraft , beating the EADS CASA C - 295 . However , the order was blocked by the government in February 2007 upon a legal challenge filed by EADS . In June 2007 , the order was confirmed again when the Romanian court rejected EADS ' complaint . The Romanian government officially signed the contract for the delivery of seven C - 27Js on 7 December 2007 , with the first two Spartans delivered on 12 April 2010 . , orders stand at Italy ( 12 ) , Greece ( 12 ) , Bulgaria ( 3 ) , Lithuania ( 3 ) , Morocco ( 4 ) , Romania ( 7 ) , Mexico ( 4 ) and United States ( 38 ) . Operational history . Italy received its first C - 27J in October 2006 . The Italian Air Force deployed two C - 27Js to Afghanistan from 12 September 2008 to 27 January 2009 in support NATO airlift operations . In March 2011 , the Bulgarian Air Force received its last of three C - 27Js ordered . Bulgaria had initially ordered five in 2006 , but reduced its order in 2010 . The United States received its first C - 27J on 25 September 2008 . In September 2008 , the C - 27J Schoolhouse , operated by L - 3 Link , officially began classes at the Georgia Army National Guard Flight Facility , Robins Air Force Base , Georgia . By April 2009 , the U . S . Army had accepted deliveries of two aircraft and had 11 more on order . A proposal in May 2009 that the U . S . Army / Army National Guard relinquish all of its aircraft to the U . S . Air Force , primarily the Air National Guard , with a reduction of the total buy to 38 aircraft , led the DoD to give total control of the US ' s C - 27Js to the USAF in December . Although the initial plan was for the C - 27J to be operated by the Air National Guard for direct support of the United States Army , that changed to both Army National Guard and Air National Guard flight crews to support the fielding of the aircraft . The U . S . Air National Guard had received four C - 27Js by July 2010 and began using them for testing and training . Purchase of 38 Spartans is anticipated with initial operational capability expected in October 2010 . The U . S . Air Force had planned the C - 27J ' s first combat deployment for summer 2011 . In August 2011 , two C - 27J aircraft flown by Air National Guard personnel with Army National Guard personnel began operations at Kandahar Air Field , Afghanistan . From August to December 2011 , the C - 27Js of the 179th Airlift Wing transported some 400 tons of cargo , and over 6 , 900 passengers in more than 900 missions . By exercising tactical control of the C - 27Js , the U . S . Army was able to employ helicopters in a much more efficient fashion , splitting missions between the two platforms to make best use of the strengths of each . The U . S . Army had indicated that a fleet of 54 aircraft posed a moderate risk to mission fulfillment in 2005 ; the USAF has moved to cancel the program entirely in early 2012 . On 26 January 2012 , the U . S . Department of Defense announced plans to remove all 38 C - 27Js on order from the U . S . Air Force ' s inventory as their niche capabilities are too expensive . The C - 27J ' s duties are to be taken by the U . S . Air Force ' s C - 130s . In February 2012 , Alenia warned that it would not provide support for C - 27Js resold by the United States . In March 2012 , it was reported that the U . S . Coast Guard is considering taking over the aircraft from the U . S . Air Force . On 23 March 2012 , the U . S . Air Force announced that it will cut the C - 27J from its inventory in fiscal year 2013 after determining that its per - aircraft lifecycle costs are higher than those of C - 130 aircraft performing the same combat resupply mission . , the USAF was continuing to shut down the program , in anticipation that Congress will support its budget request to do so . In July 2012 the entire fleet was grounded due to a flight control system failure . By 2013 newly built C - 27Js were being sent directly to the Davis – Monthan Air Force Base boneyard . This was to make room for C - 130s , as the USAF found itself with too many tactical transports . The Air Force has spent $ 567 million on 21 C - 27Js since 2007 , with 16 delivered by the end of September 2013 . 12 have already been taken out of service and sent to " the Boneyard , " with five more to be built by April 2014 , all of which are headed to the boneyard unless another use for them is found . The five under construction are too near completion to simply halt building . Sequestration budget cuts caused the Air Force to want to divest the aircraft , with a C - 27J costing $ 308 million over its lifespan , in comparison with a C - 130 ' s $ 213 million 25 - year lifespan cost . In November 2012 , the C - 27J deployed for its first domestic United States mission as part of the Hurricane Sandy relief effort . Possible sales . The Royal Australian Air Force has made a Foreign Military Sales request for 10 C - 27Js light air lifters valued up to US $ 950m to replace its retired DHC - 4 Caribou fleet . One advantage identified by the RAAF over the rival C - 295 , is the C - 27J ' s wider and taller cabin that makes it compatible with the Australian Army ' s general purpose G - Wagon vehicle and palletized goods . The C - 27J was being considered as a sole - source contract by the Government of Canada as a future replacement for its current search and rescue air fleet ; this contract was worth approximately C $ 3 billion in January 2007 . Slovakia ' s air force has selected the C - 27J and is negotiating an order for at least two aircraft . Ghana requested the possible Foreign Military Sale of four C - 27Js in September 2009 , but purchased another aircraft instead . The Indian Air Force has issued a Request for Information ( RFI ) for 16 medium military transport aircraft . Alenia Aeronautica responded with information about the C - 27J . On 21 August 2009 , Taiwan announced that it had entered price negotiations with Alenia Aeronautica for the sale of six C - 27J Spartan aircraft . Indonesia is considering the purchase of the C - 27J as of March 2011 . The C - 27J has been shortlisted as a candidate for the Philippine Air Force ( PAF ) medium lift aircraft program . A joint team from the Philippines ' Department of National Defense ( DND ) and PAF inspected the C - 27J in January 2012 . The DND already received approval from the Philippine president to purchase 3 units , and is awaiting congressional approval as of November 2012 . In June 2013 , the Peruvian Air Force began negotiations to acquire four C - 27J aircraft for $ 200 million . Future purchases may increase the total to 12 Spartans . The C - 27J is part of a competition that includes the EADS CASA C - 295 , the Antonov An - 70 , the upgraded Antonov An - 32 , and the Lockheed C - 130J Super Hercules . In July 2013 , the U . S . Coast Guard was considered acquiring up to 14 of the 21 decommissioned Air Force C - 27J Spartans . Transferring the aircraft and cancelling the remaining orders for the HC - 144 Ocean Sentry while retaining those already delivered , would save the service $ 500 – $ 800 million . The Spartans would be converted for search - and - rescue missions . EADS pointed out that the HC - 144 costs half as much as the C - 27J to maintain and operate . The U . S . Forest Service wants 7 former Air Force C - 27Js for firefighting activities . The U . S . Special Operations Command ( SOCOM ) , has also shown interest in acquiring ex - Air Force C - 27Js . If the C - 27Js stay in the Defense Department , they can go to SOCOM or the Coast Guard . If the DoD determines it cannot afford the aircraft , they can go to the Forest Service . The Coast Guard wants all 21 Spartans , and the Forest Service has asked for 7 C - 27Js , and C - 130Js , to use as aerial tankers . SOCOM will receive 7 C - 27Js to replace its fleet of CASA 212 aircraft for training . Variants . AC - 27J Stinger II . The AC - 27J was a proposed gunship for the U . S . Air Force . In 2008 , US $ 32 million was reallocated to purchase a C - 27J for the U . S . Air Force Special Operations Command , to fulfill the requirements that AFSOC had defined under the AC - XX concept , a replacement for the aging and extensively used Lockheed AC - 130 s . The AC - 27J was to be equipped using proven hardware and systems to reduce risk . AFSOC planned to acquire 16 aircraft , the first gunship in 2011 and two more per year from 2012 to 2015 . The AC - 27J was to serve as a multi - mission platform , equipped with full - motion cameras and outfitted to support covert infiltration missions as well as providing armed support for ground forces , armed with either a 30 - millimeter or 40 - millimeter gun or precision - guided munitions such as the Viper Strike bomb . At the Air Force Association ' s 2008 conference , it was reported that the AC - 27J variant would be named " Stinger II " after the AC - 119K Stinger . C - 27A " 90 - 0170 " ( c / n 4097 ) was removed from storage at AMARC in October 2008 and delivered to Eglin AFB , Florida , for use by the Air Force Research Laboratory to test the feasibility of mounting of 30 mm and 40 mm guns . In May 2009 , the program was put on hold because U . S . Army funding for 40 C - 27s in an Army - Air Force cooperative purchase was removed from the fiscal 2010 budget . U . S . Air Force Special Operations Command will retain the C - 130 to meet its stated need for gunships . MC - 27J . The MC - 27J is a development of the C - 27J for multi - mission purposes , including command and control , communications , and operations as an armed gunship . In the gunship role , the MC - 27J can integrate Hellfire missile s and precision - guided munitions , as well as an optionally - equipped 30 mm gun can be installed and rapidly uninstalled when not required . It features systems to carry out intelligence , surveillance and reconnaissance missions , as well as a defensive aids suite . In July 2012 , Alenia Aermacchi announced its intention to offer an upgrade program for existing C - 27Js to the MC - 27J configuration in the future . The MC - 27J is being developed as an Alenia - ATK private venture . EC - 27 " Jedi " . In 2010 , the Italian Air Force announced the development of an electronic warfare package for its C - 27 fleet under the jamming and electronic defence instrumentation ( Jedi ) program . One publicised ability of the aircraft is the disruption of radio communications and , in particular , remote detonator s commonly used on improvised explosive device s ( IEDs ) . The EC - 27 has been compared to the capabilities of the USAF ' s Lockheed EC - 130H Compass Call .