Transall C 160

Transall C 160 has landed in Speyer

During the course of this year the first Transall C 160 cargo airplanes of the German Air Force are retired. Thousands of soldiers experienced this sturdy aircraft as a reliable means of transportation but soon the planes can only be viewed in museums anymore. The first retired specimen landed on the airfield Speyer on 13 April 2011 and will now become part of the aviation exhibition of the technology museums Sinsheim and Speyer.

The last flight of the plane led from Penzing in Bavaria to the airfield Speyer. After the landing the aircraft with a wing span of ca. 40 meters and a height of about 12 meters was hauled to the premises of the Technik MUSEUM SPEYER directly opposite to the airfield where it will remain for now. A piece of history of the German armed forces is now presented to the visitors of the museum which is well known from the media because this type of aircraft can be found at any place where the German army is deployed. Besides soldiers the German chancellors and ministers of defense also belonged to its passengers.

At the end of the 1950s and the beginning of the 1960s the German and French air force were in need of a tactic cargo plane. Responsible for the development of this sturdy plane were the Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke Bremen, the Hamburger Flugzeugbau and the French company Nord Aviation. The thirst three prototypes flew in February 1963. The German air force received its first specimen on 30 April 1968. 110 more planes followed and replaced the “Noratlas” Nord 2501 which was used before. For personnel transports 93 seats are available. For transport of sick or wounded soldiers the plane has space for 62 stretchers and 4 accompanying persons in addition to the 5 crew members. The payload capacity is 16,000 kg. Vehicles can directly drive into the plane over the rear loading ramp.

The Transall is a cantilever high-wing aircraft with a length of 40 meters, a wing span of 40 meters and a height of 12.3 meters. The two four blade propellers with a diameter of 5.4 meters are powered by two Rolls-Royce engines with a nominal output of 5747 hp each. The average travel speed is 490 km/h, the maximum speed is 520 km/h, and the rate of climb is 8 m/s. The plane reaches a service ceiling of about 30.000 feet.
Pictures from the arrival at 13 April 2011

More aircraft at the Technik MUSEUM SPEYER