Up to $250M Requested to Fix Kuwait’s C-130 Transports

L-100-30(click to view full) On Oct 4/07, the US DSCA announced [PDF] Kuwait’s formal request to upgrade 3 L-100-30 aircraft (civilian stretched versions of the C-130E/H Hercules) to include modifications, spare and repair parts, support equipment, publications and technical data, flight engineer training, communications equipment, maintenance, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor engineering and logistics support services, preparation of aircraft for shipment, and other related elements of logistics support. The total value, if all options are exercised, could be as high as $250 million. That’s an odd amount, considering that the Kuwaitis could buy 3 completely new, higher capacity C-130J-30s with that amount of money, and still have funds left over. C-130J-30: why not?(click to view full) The KAF received 4 stretched civilian L-100-30 Hercules transport aircraft in 1983, replacing the shorter L-100-20s that had been in service since 1971. One was captured during the Iraqi invasion in 1990, while the other 3 escaped to Saudi Arabia. The captured aircraft was subsequently destroyed by British Buccaneer strike fighters using laser-guided bombs, leaving only 3 Hercules to serve in the KAF’s 41 Transport squadron at Ahmed al Jaber. The question is, why spend $250 million on them, instead […]