The Colombian Air Force (FAC) is in negotiations with Textron Aviation to acquire additional T-6C Texan II trainers.
According to the site Defense News, the FAC is negotiating for four new T-6Cs, for a potential value of $38 million. The negotiations were confirmed by Brett Pierson, president and CEO of Textron Aviation Defense, on his social networks.
The Beechcraft T-6C Texan II story in Colombia begins in 2020, when an order is placed for 8 of these aircraft, to replace the old Cessna T-37B ‘Tweet’ in their task of advanced pilot training.
The first two T-6Cs arrived in Colombia in July 2021, and so far six units have already been received, which are the next step in the training of FAC pilots, after the modernized Embraer AT-27M Tucano.
According to the sources, the armed aircraft would be used for tactical combat flight training with a secondary light attack role. They would also replace A-37B light attack aircraft and complement Colombia’s fleet of 24 Embraer AT-29 Super Tucano ground attack and counterinsurgency (COIN) Embraer AT-29s.
The Colombian Air Force also considered purchasing an advanced trainer/LIFT jet with light combat capability, having received offers from Leonardo for its M-346FA and KAI for the FA-50, but such a purchase will have to wait until the IAI Kfir fleet is replaced.
Errata
In the first version of this article, the erroneous version that the Colombian Air Force would be negotiating with Textron Aviation the eventual purchase of 24 T-6C Texan II, both for training purposes and for light attack missions, was reproduced. However, this information was denied by the press team of the company. So far, the FAC has acquired six T-6Cs.
