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| A USAF C-130 (Image: Wiki Commons) |
By Prashanth Parameswaran
Aircraft will be a much-needed and long overdue shot in the arm for Manila.
On January 9, the United States disclosed that it would give the Philippines a pair of surplus Lockheed Martin C-130T Hercules transport aircraft in early 2016.
This is old news to those who follow Asian defense closely. The Philippines has been looking to boost its C-130 fleet for years, and the Obama administration has been mulling granting such aircraft to the Philippine government for a while now, with outstanding questions on issues such as the number and timing. News of the impending donation itself first broke publicly in July 2014, with the chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. disclosing that the planes would be delivered in 2015 and all that was left was the finalization of documents. The official announcement now confirms that it will happen in 2016, not 2015.
Read the full story at The Diplomat