🇳🇬 Nigeria advances C-295 talks following Airbus visit in Spain

 

The Nigerian Air Force has once again signaled its interest in the CASA C-295, following a high-level visit to Airbus Defence and Space facilities in Spain in March 2026. While no contract has been signed, the visit offers a clear indication that the platform remains under serious consideration as part of Nigeria’s ongoing effort to strengthen its airlift capabilities.

The delegation, led by Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke, spent several days engaging directly with both operators and industry. At Getafe Air Base, home of the Spanish Air and Space Force’s 35th Wing, the Nigerian team was introduced to the operational profile of the aircraft. The briefings focused on how the C-295 performs in day-to-day missions such as troop transport, logistics support, medical evacuation and humanitarian operations, highlighting its flexibility and relatively low operating footprint.

From an operational perspective, this kind of profile aligns closely with Nigeria’s current needs. The ability to sustain operations over long periods, often in demanding environments, makes platforms like the C-295 particularly attractive for air forces balancing capability with cost and availability.

The visit then shifted to Madrid, where discussions with Airbus Defence and Space centered on the aircraft’s global track record and the support structure behind it. Beyond the platform itself, Airbus emphasized training, logistics and long-term sustainment, areas that are often decisive in procurement decisions but receive less public attention.

One of the more forward-looking aspects of the visit was a briefing on the SIRTAP, a next-generation unmanned system designed for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. Its potential integration with manned platforms points toward a broader operational concept rather than a standalone acquisition.

The final stop in Seville provided a closer look at the industrial side of the program, with the delegation touring the production lines where both the C-295 and the Airbus A400M Atlas are assembled. Seeing the manufacturing process firsthand often plays a key role in shaping confidence in both the platform and its long-term supportability.

Nigeria’s interest in the C-295 is not new, but it has yet to translate into a firm order. Financial constraints and competing priorities have slowed progress in the past, and the program remains in a tentative phase. At the same time, alternative platforms such as the Embraer C-390 Millennium are also part of the wider conversation, adding another layer of complexity to the decision.

What is clear, however, is that Nigeria is actively exploring options to modernize its transport fleet. The C-295 continues to stand out as a practical and proven solution, but until a contract is signed, it remains a candidate rather than a confirmed acquisition.

The Singapore air force’s first Airbus A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) has arrived in the country.

Images posted on social media show the aircraft landing at Changi East airbase, where Singapore’s Boeing KC-135R tankers are based.
Flight tracking sites indicate that the aircraft (S/N 1762) flew direct to Singapore from Madrid’s Getafe air base.
Neither the nation’s defence ministry nor the air force announced the tanker’s arrival. The aircraft’s livery, however, recognises the 50-year history of the Republic of Singapore Air Force, with ‘RSAF 50’ on the tail, and ‘Our Home, Above All’ on the engine cowling.
Flight Fleets Analyzer indicates that the jet is powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent 772B-60EP powerplants, and that its first flight was on 10 November 2016.
In addition to a hose-and-drogue refuelling pod on both wings, the aircraft is also equipped with a refuelling boom. The aircraft has 260 passenger seats, and can be used to carry cargo pallets.
Singapore has five additional A330 MRTT’s on order. These will replace the nation’s four obsolescent Boeing KC-135Rs, which have an average age of 55.9 years.
The arrival brings the number of in service A330 MRTTs in service to 26. Other operators include the UK, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
The Singapore arrival comes days after Canberra announced that its A330 MRTTs – designated KC-30A in Australian service – have delivered 100 million pounds of fuel (45,000t) during air-to-air refuelling missions in support of coalition missions over the Middle East.
flightglobal

Spain Receives Latest Standard Eurofighter Typhoon with Enhanced Air-to-Surface Capabilities

Photo credits to AirbusDS

The aircraft were manufactured at the Getafe Final Assembly Line in the P1Eb FW (Phase 1 Enhanced Further Work) configuration which marks a key step in the overall Eurofighter evolution plan.
This same configuration is being retrofitted to in-service aircraft by other Eurofighter nations. It provides increased integration of a variety of air-to-surface weapons and enhanced targeting among other improvements.
Spanish procurement agency DGAM took delivery of the aircraft on 22 December and they were subsequently ferried to Albacete air force base to enter service. The remaining six of the 73 aircraft currently contracted by Spain will be delivered to the same P1Eb FW standard during 2018 and 2019.
airbus

Germany and Norway place firm order for fleet of five NATO-owned Airbus A330 MRTT tankers

Airbus Defence and Space has received a firm order for five Airbus A330 MRTT Multi Role Tanker Transports from Europe’s organisation for the management of cooperative armament programmes – OCCAR – on behalf of NATO Support & Procurement Agency (NSPA) and funded by Germany and Norway.
The order follows the announcement on 29 June of a Memorandum of Understanding under which the two nations would join Netherlands and Luxembourg in the European/NATO Multinational Multi-Role Tanker Transport Fleet (MMF) programme.
A contract amendment signed at the OCCAR headquarters in Bonn, Germany today adds five aircraft to the two previously ordered by Netherlands and Luxembourg and includes four additional options to enable other nations to join the grouping. It includes two years of initial support.
The programme is funded by the four nations who will have the exclusive right to operate these NATO–owned aircraft in a pooling arrangement. The aircraft will be configured for in-flight refuelling, the transport of passengers and cargo, and medical evacuation flights.
The first two aircraft have already been ordered to be delivered from Airbus Defence and Space’s tanker conversion line at Getafe near Madrid and all seven are expected to be handed over between 2020 and 2022.
airbus

UK Voyager deliveries hit half-way point

AirTanker’s Voyager programme has hit the mid-point in its delivery of 14 modified Airbus A330s, with its latest example having arrived in the UK on 29 January.
Registered as ZZ337, the new aircraft landed at RAF Brize Norton after a delivery flight from Airbus Defence & Space’s modification facility in Getafe, near Madrid, Spain. It follows five previous examples adapted for the in-flight refuelling mission and flown by the service’s 10 and 101 squadrons, plus another which is currently held on the UK civil register and flown by AirTanker pilots.
A further two Voyager aircraft are on schedule to be delivered by May 2014, when the fleet is due to achieve full release to service status with the RAF. Five more examples, which are to provide a so-called surge capability, will follow between 2015 and late 2016.
flightglobal

Increased operational capabilities for Eurofighter Typhoon

Cassidian-EADS, has successfully finalized its flight testing of the Eurofighter Typhoon Phase 1 Enhancements (P1E) programme. After an intensive test programme of this First Batch of Enhancements on Instrumented Production Aircraft 4 and 7, this enhancement is confirmed to deliver a robust simultaneous multi-/swing-role capability to the Nations' Air Forces. It will be ready for the customers by the end of 2013.
The testing took place at Cassidian´s Military Air Systems Centers in Manching/Germany and Getafe/Spain, in cooperation with BAE Systems and Alenia Aermacchi.
P1E implements full Air-to-Surface capability on Eurofighter Typhoon - including Laser Designator Pod -, full smart bomb integration, modern secure Identification Friend or Foe (Mode 5), improved Radios and Direct Voice Input, Air-to-Surface Helmet Mounted Sight System, improved Air-to-Air capabilities including digital integration of Short Range Air-to-Air Missiles and updated MIDS (Multifunctional Information Distribution System) Datalink functionalities for enhanced interoperability with Coalition Forces.
The Enhancements cover the design, development, qualification and clearance of the first major upgrade after the Main Development Contract. It is a major milestone in the development of Eurofighter Typhoon giving seamless air-to-ground integration to the weapon system and forming the baseline for further enhancements such as AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar and Meteor missile.
eads

Airbus Military delivers third A330 MRTT to United Arab Emirates

Airbus Military has delivered the third of three new generation A330 MRTT multi-role tanker transports ordered by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Seventeen examples of the type are now in service with four customers – Australia, Saudi Arabia, UAE and the United Kingdom.
Converted from an Airbus A330 commercial passenger jet by Airbus Military at Getafe near Madrid, the aircraft will serve with the UAE Air Force and Air Defense at Al-Ain airbase.
Following an extensive series of flight-tests in Abu Dhabi, the aircraft has successfully completed receiver qualification of the two fighter types that the UAE AF&AD will refuel in service – the F-16E/F Block 60 and Mirage 2000.
airbusmilitary

RAF A-330 Voyager AirTanker Cleared To Begin Air-To-Air Refueling Operations

AirTanker, the company charged with providing the U.K. Royal Air Force (RAF) with air-to-air refueling capability, has been cleared to begin inflight refueling.
The long-awaited clearance, granted by the U.K. Military Aviation Authority (MAA) on May 16, means that RAF Panavia Tornado crews can now start refueling training from the new A330 Voyager tankers. Refueling clearances with the Eurofighter Typhoon will follow later along with other aircraft in the inventory.

Anthony Osborne-aviationweek

El Mando Aéreo General dona un vehículo a la congregación Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles de Getafe

El pasado 19 de abril se realizó en las instalaciones del Centro Logístico de Material de Apoyo (CLOMA), ubicado en el Acuartelamiento Aéreo de Getafe, la entrega del vehículo microbús Mercedes 308-D a la Real e Ilustre Congregación de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles.
La entrega del vehículo y su documentación la llevó a cabo en nombre del Ejército del Aire, el jefe del CLOMA, coronel Santiago Luis Peloche Ferrera, al hermano mayor de la Congregación, Fernando Parejo Tornero.
Este vehículo será destinado a reforzar los medios de transporte con los que cuenta la comunidad de religiosas Carmelitas de Camaná en Perú, que desde hace más de diez años desarrolla en ese país una gran labor social, orientada a la infancia y a ancianos con pocos recursos.
Esta comunidad religiosa mantiene abierto un comedor infantil en el que se reparten más de 250 comidas diarias, y que son financiadas por la congregación, mediante donaciones y aportaciones de particulares y empresas.
Con esta entrega el Ejército del Aire aporta su grano de arena a esta noble causa, poniendo de manifiesto una vez más las buenas relaciones existentes entre sus unidades instaladas en Getafe y las asociaciones, congregaciones y demás entidades representativas de esta localidad del sur de Madrid.

ejercitodelaire

A330 MRTT enters RAAF operational service

Australia's Airbus Military A330 multirole tanker transport (MRTT) aircraft have achieved initial operational capability (IOC), with the type demonstrating an air-to-air refuelling mission on the sidelines of the Avalon show.
The aircraft, designated the KC-30A in Royal Australian Air Force service, refuelled a pair of Boeing F/A-18A Hornets from its wing-mounted hose and drogue refuelling pods. The event was witnessed by journalists travelling in the tanker's cabin.
Australia's air force has taken delivery of all five of its A330 MRTTs. The IOC milestone includes the ability to refuel F/A-18s through the hose and drogue method during daytime and night, as well as carrying a full load of passengers. The type's passenger cabin is identical to that found in Qantas Airways' commercial A330s, although the military aircraft lack an in-flight entertainment system.

flightglobal