Sweden will replace C-130H with either KC-390 or A400M

The Swedish air force is likely to field a replacement for its aged Lockheed Martin C-130H tactical transports at some point during the next decade, with potential candidates including the Embraer KC-390 and Airbus A400M.
Sweden Air Force will mark the 50th anniversary of its introduction of the Hercules, with its active fleet now including five transports and one KC-130H tanker. Two other aircraft have already been retired and are in storage in the UK, and the service could in time decide to reduce its operational fleet to only four examples.
Sweden’s recently published defence bill for the 2016-2020 period identifies the need to address the C-130H replacement issue only post-2021. The nation’s air force has already shown interest in Embraer’s developmental KC-390 transport and tanker. Sweden could also investigate the potential acquisition of the A400M. Several of the latter model are likely to become available early next decade, as Germany and Spain have said they will not be able to fully field their on-order fleets.
flightglobal