The United States has ordered two M28 Block 05 cargo and troop transport aircraft from Poland for the Nepalese Air Force.
Awarded by the US Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, the $30.3 million contract will see Poland’s PZL Mielec deliver the aircraft to Kathmandu, Nepal, by April 2025.
According to a Pentagon announcement, the contract also includes associated aircraft training, spares package, medical equipment, six months of field service representative services, and ferry flight service.
This is the second time the US is buying the M28 for Nepal, after awarding PZL Mielec $19 million in March 2019 to provide the light transport aircraft as part of the US Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program.
The new airframes are replacing a single M28 that had been previously donated by Poland to Nepal. That aircraft was lost in a crash in 2017.
As an aircraft capable of taking off and landing from unpaved ground landing sites, the short takeoff M28 is ideal for Nepal’s short, high-altitude runways.
The twin-engine Skytruck has a semi-monocoque hull with the construction of the floor and the fastening system enabling the installation of passenger seats, landing equipment, sanitary equipment, cargo loads and special equipment operator stands.
