The Algerian Air Force has taken delivery of a second Super Hercules transport from Lockheed Martin, and will receive further examples in the near future.
A first Super Hercules (7T-WJA, cn 382-5818) arrived in Algeria on 23 January this year – it is a former Lockheed Martin demonstrator (N5103D) and the commercial LM-100J prototype (the LM-100J is the civilian version of the C-130J). It first flew on 30 June 2017.
The second LM-100J for Algeria arrived at Boufarik air base on 24 April after a stopover at St John’s International Airport in Canada the previous night. The aircraft (7T-WJB, cn 382-5824) is a former civil aircraft and was operated by Pallas Aviation as N5105A. It first flew in October 2017 and is the second LM-100J produced.
Algeria ordered four C-130J-30 Super Hercules transport aircraft in 2018 but it is not clear if they will all be to LM-100J standard or military versions.
The Algerian Air Force already operates C-130H and C-130H-30 Hercules transports, which are in service with the 2ème Escadre de Transport Tactique et Logistique (2nd Tactical Transport and Logistics Wing) at Boufarik air base. Seven C-130H and three C-130H-30 transports are believed to be operational, along with a single L100-30. They have been in service since the early 1980s. Another two have been lost in crashes.
Other transports in service include half a dozen C295s, half a dozen Il-76TDs and numerous smaller Beech 1900Ds and Super King Airs.
Algeria is the second C-130J Super Hercules operator in Africa after Tunisia received two aircraft in 2013 and 2014. Twenty other nations around the world operate the type.
