It may be that the decision to send three C-130Hs to Israel and one to Portugal to return them to operational status will somewhat improve the grounding status of the 356th MTM’s 15 C-130H/Bs, but this improvement will be marginal in any case.
The C-130H/B is no longer supported by the manufacturer Lockheed Martin, while it is already in its 47th year of operational life. The C-130s cannot remain in service beyond 2030, when they will complete 55 years of service. However, in order for the new aircraft to be operational at the end of the decade, any replacement program should start immediately. What would be the aircraft that could be the successor of the C-130 in the PA? On the international market today there are four types (two jets and two with propellers), which would perfectly fill the void of the old Hercules fighters.
These are the C-130J Super Hercules, the A400M and the EMBRAER C-390 Millennium and Kawasaki C-2 jets.
The first of these, the Super Hercules, is the natural successor to the C-130, and by July 2021 the number of aircraft that left the production line had reached 450.
The A-400M was designed by Airbus Military as a tactical transport, but also having strategic capabilities in terms of range.
The Japanese Kawasaki C-2 is a high-wing, twin-engine T-tail aircraft and identical in cargo capacity to the A400M.
Finally, the C-390 Millennium of the Brazilian EMBRAER, which with 26 tons of cargo, a maximum speed of 988 h and a range of 5,820 km. seems to be a very capable transport aircraft and the most ideal solution for the P.A. both in terms of cost of use and operational capabilities.
