C-295 Persuader

The Airbus C-295 Persuader is the maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare variant of the C-295, a medium-range twin-turboprop tactical transport designed by the Spanish company CASA and now produced by Airbus Defence and Space. The baseline aircraft first flew on 28 November 1997 and entered service with the Spanish Air Force in November 2001. The Persuader configuration adds mission sensors and six underwing hardpoints for maritime surveillance, search and rescue, and anti-submarine work.

Development

CASA began development of the C-295 in November 1996 as a derivative of the CASA/IPTN CN-235, with a stretched fuselage, a 50% increase in payload and Pratt & Whitney Canada PW127G engines. The prototype flew on 28 November 1997, and certification by the Spanish Dirección General de Aviación Civil and the FAA followed in December 1999. Spain ordered nine aircraft in April 1999; deliveries began in November 2001. Final assembly is carried out at San Pablo Airport, Seville, with licence production by Indonesian Aerospace at Bandung since 2011 and by Tata Advanced Systems at Vadodara, Gujarat, from 2021. In June 2012 Airbus Military announced winglets and integration of the Marte anti-ship missile. By 30 November 2025, 329 C-295s had been ordered, with 238 in service and three lost in accidents.

Design

The C-295 is designed for austere-strip operation with minimal ground support and can turn 180° on runways 12 m wide using auto-reverse. The cargo hold measures 12.69 × 1.90 × 2.70 m, roughly three metres longer than that of the CN-235. Power comes from two PW127G turboprops of 1,972 kW (2,645 shp) each, driving six-bladed Hamilton Standard composite scimitar propellers of 3.89 m diameter. Avionics are built around the Highly Integrated Avionics System based on the Thales Topdeck suite, with a Honeywell RDR-1400C weather radar and an Integrated Engine Data and Warning System; from 2019 Airbus selected the Collins Pro Line Fusion flight deck for later aircraft. The Messier-Dowty tricycle undercarriage has oleo-pneumatic shock absorbers, differential disc brakes and anti-skid. Maritime aircraft carry a multi-mission search radar; a self-protection suite with Elbit Systems DIRCM was demonstrated in November 2015.

Armament

The Persuader has six hardpoints, three under each wing, rated at 800 kg inboard, 500 kg centre and 300 kg outboard. Munitions include the Marte anti-ship missile and air-dropped torpedoes, with sonobuoys carried for ASW search. Indian Navy and Coast Guard maritime aircraft are to carry NASM-SR and NASM-MR anti-ship missiles and the Advanced Light Torpedo Shyena. Maximum payload for the transport airframe is 9,000 kg.

Operational History

Portugal operates five Persuaders within a 12-aircraft C-295 fleet, flown by 502 Squadron at Montijo Air Base. The Chilean Navy operates three C-295 MPAs, and Algeria and Angola acquired maritime-configured aircraft. Spain approved 16 C-295W in June 2023, six in maritime patrol and ten in maritime surveillance fit, replacing the P-3 Orion and CN-235 D.4. Ireland ordered two Maritime Surveillance Aircraft in December 2019, receiving the first on 27 June 2023. The C-295 MPA was a candidate to replace the German Navy's P-3C, but Germany ordered five P-8 Poseidons in July 2021. In February 2024 India approved nine MRMRA aircraft for the Navy and six MMMA for the Coast Guard.