Marshall passes maintenance milestone for USMC

6th July 2021 - 10:00 GMT | by The Shephard News Team

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USMC KC-130J takes off from the Marshall Aerospace and Defence facility in Cambridge, UK. (Photo: Marshall ADG)

First USMC KC-130J to be upgraded under 2020 contract returns to its squadron.

Marshall Aerospace and Defence has completed the first planned maintenance interval of a USMC KC-130J Super Hercules at its MRO facility in Cambridge, and the tanker aircraft has now returned to Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 252 at Cherry Point, North Carolina.

The KC-130J underwent the work in the UK as part of a ten-year, multimillion-dollar contract from the DoD.

According to Shephard Defence Insight, the USMC operates the largest number of KC-130Js in the world, with a total of 60 aircraft expected by the end of 2021 and more to follow in subsequent years,

Marshall won the Multiple Award Contract (MAC) in 2020 after an international competition that included extensive pre-solicitation audits and a demonstration of past performance.

Duncan Eldridge, MD of Marshall Military Aerospace, described the planned maintenance interval as ‘extensive’, adding that its successful delivery was ‘a very significant and exciting milestone for Marshall’.

The company supports a total of 17 C-130 operators worldwide.

After learning in March 2021 in the MoD Command Paper that the UK will take its C-130J fleet out of service in 2023 (12 years earlier than expected), Marshall Aerospace intends to take advantage of international transport aircraft market demand.