Nigeria has taken a step towards bolstering its military transport capabilities by acquiring four CN235-220 multipurpose aircraft from Indonesia. This marks the first export order for PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) in 2024 and signifies a significant development in bilateral defence cooperation between the two nations.
According to PTDI’s statement at the Singapore Airshow 2024, it is currently in the process of obtaining a new procurement contract for 4 units of the CN235-220 multipurpose aircraft with Allied Aeronautics Limited (AAL), a local aerospace company in Nigeria for the Nigerian Air Force end user.
The deal comes after discussions between Nigeria and Indonesia in January 2022 regarding potential hardware sales and joint production. The Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs previously accepted a draft proposal for enhanced defence cooperation, including a list of equipment from Abuja valued at roughly $57 million. Nigeria seeks local production for the aircraft as part of the business agreement.
Earlier in 2001, Flight Global reported that Dirgantara Indonesia won an order to supply 20 Airtech CN-235 transports to the Nigerian Government in an oil for arms deal. However, the business stalled for unknown reasons.
This acquisition holds strategic significance for both countries. For Nigeria, the CN235-220 aircraft offers numerous advantages, including the ability to operate from rough and unpaved airstrips, enhanced stability and fuel efficiency due to winglets, and a modern glass cockpit avionics system with autopilot. For Indonesia, the successful export to Nigeria strengthens its position as a prominent defence partner in Africa and showcases its capabilities in the defence manufacturing sector. PTDI, the manufacturer of the aircraft, has a proven track record with over 70 units of various CN235 models delivered globally, including Senegal, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali, Gabon, Morocco, and Mauritania. This new contract serves as a strategic step for PTDI to further penetrate the African and South Asian markets.
The export of the CN235-220 aircraft to the African continent has strategic value for Indonesia’s industry “This new contract for Nigeria is also one of our strategic steps to penetrate the markets of South Asian and African countries.” PTDI said.
The Indonesian-made aircraft, CN235-220, is increasingly in demand by many countries. The CN-235 was developed by Spain’s Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA) and Dirgantara Indonesia (then known as Aircraft Technology Industries) in the early 1980s as a tactical utility transport aircraft. It first flew in 1983 and was formally introduced into service in 1988. The CN-235 was by design meant to be lighter and smaller than the larger, yet very reliable and highly popular, C-130 Hercules, essentially serving as a supplementary asset where it would be inefficient to use a larger transport platform.
Alternatively, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has indicated an interest in procuring aircraft from Airbus including C-295 tactical transport. Nigeria’s Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, announced on 23 March when he hosted the Spanish Ambassador to Nigeria, Juan Ignacio Sell, at NAF Headquarters in Abuja, that the NAF is looking to partner with the Spanish Government in the areas of aircraft acquisition, training, air operations, intelligence sharing and capacity development in imagery analysis, and is in discussions with Airbus.
The new tactical transport aircraft will complement three Lockheed Martin C-130Hs Hercules in service.