During the first day of the Partner 2021 defense exhibition in Belgrade, Defense Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic announced that a contract with Airbus for the acquisition of two C295 and a batch of H145M helicopters would be signed in a few months.
According to the Serbian defense website Tango Six (T6), the minister’s statements reportedly followed a meeting he held with the National Armament Director of the Spanish Defense Ministry, Admiral Santiago Gomez on October 11, the first day of the Partner 2021 exhibition held in the country’s capital.
The Serbian Air Force currently has only one An-2 and one An-26 as its only cargo aircraft, so the C295s would not only be a necessary replacement, but would significantly increase the Force’s transport capabilities, while gaining operational flexibility thanks to the possibility of installing various kits (tanker, firefighting, MEDEVAC, ISR, etc) available for the aircraft.
Leonardo was also present at Partner 2021 (for the first time) with a stand in Hall 4, promoting products such as the M346 trainer and, particularly, the C-27J Spartan tactical transport aircraft. But it seems that it is too late for Leonardo and the decision came down on the side of Airbus Spain.
The future agreement with Airbus would be made according to the «Government-to-Government» principle, for which a memorandum of cooperation between Spain and Serbia has already been signed. The procurement process is just beginning, the signing of the procurement contracts for the C295 and H145M could take place by the end of this year or early 2022.
