Transall C-160

Transall C-160
Pays	France-Allemagne
Rôle	Avions de transport
Premier vol	Le 25 février 1963
Construit	214

Lla Transall C-160 (souvent C.160 ou tout simplement Transall) est un avion de transport militaire, conçu et produit en joint-venture entre la France et l’Allemagne. Transall est une abréviation du consortium spécialement formé Transporter Allianz, comprenant les sociétés MBB, Aerospatiale et VFW-Fokker. Il a d’abord été développé pour répondre aux exigences d’un avion cargo moderne pour les forces Français et allemandes; les ventes à l’exportation ont également été réalisées vers l’Afrique du Sud et vers la Turquie, ainsi qu’un petit nombre pour les opérateurs civils.

Source: Transall C-160 sur Wikipedia

C-160R Transall
Photographe	Meindert de Vreeze
Localisation	Inconnu
Photos	53

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The European Workhorse

Lla Transall C-160 (Transport Allianz) was born from a unique post-war collaboration between France and West Germany. Designed specifically to replace the Nord Noratlas, it was built to operate from short, semi-prepared strips in harsh environments—from the Saharan sands to the Alpine snow. While it shares a similar silhouette to the American C-130 Hercules, the Transall is a twin-engine design optimized for European and African logistical requirements, known for its incredible stability at low speeds and its rugged, « unbreakable » landing gear.

Attribute	Technical Specification (C-160NG)
Rôle	Tactical Transport / Multi-role Support
Crew	3 (Two Pilots and one Flight Engineer)
First Flight	February 25, 1963
Groupe motopropulseur	2 × Rolls-Royce Tyne Mk.22 turboprops
Horsepower	6,100 shp (4,549 kW) per engine
Vitesse maximale	320 mph (513 km/h)
Max Payload	35,275 lbs (16,000 kg)
Service Ceiling	27,000 feet (8,230 m)

Tactical Design & Versatility

High-Flotation Landing Gear: The C-160’s landing gear is a marvel of engineering, featuring large, low-pressure tires that retract into prominent « sponsons » on the side of the fuselage. This allows the plane to land on soft mud or deep sand without sinking.
Lla « Gabriel » & « Astout » Variantes: France developed highly specialized versions, including the C-160G Gabriel for electronic intelligence (ELINT) and the C-160H Astarté, which served as a flying communications relay for the French nuclear submarine fleet.
Rolls-Royce Tyne Engines: The massive 18-foot (5.5m) four-bladed propellers provide immense low-speed thrust, giving the Transall impressive STOL (Short Take-Off and Landing) performance, often outperforming the C-130 on very short strips.
Air-to-Air Refueling: The second-generation C-160NG (Nouvelle Génération) introduced a prominent refueling probe above the cockpit and the ability to act as a tanker themselves, extending the reach of French operations in Africa.

A Legacy of Service

African Operations: The Transall was the backbone of French operations in Africa (Operation Serval and Barkhane) for decades, earning the nickname « The Angel » from troops on the ground for its reliability in delivering supplies and evacuating the wounded.
Humanitarian Hero: During the 1984–1985 famine in Ethiopia, C-160s from Germany and France flew thousands of « low-level » drops of food and supplies into remote villages where no runways existed.
The Retirement: After nearly 60 years of service, the C-160 was officially retired by the Luftwaffe in 2021 and the French Air Force in 2022, replaced by the much larger Airbus A400M.
Lla « Retro » Farewell: For its retirement, the German Luftwaffe painted a C-160 (50+40) in a stunning « Retro-Brummel » scheme, featuring the various liveries the aircraft wore throughout its history.