The Search for a C-12 Huron Replacement: 2024 Update

It is no secret that the U.S. Army has been trying to come up with a suitable replacement for the C-12 Huron fleet of aircraft. In fact, several of the article stretch back to over twelve years ago. At this time, the fleet would have been not even forty years old yet. As it stands, the C-12 has now been in service for over fifty years (not that there are many original models if any, but the mission and MDS have been in service for five decades).

The Army has been able to make significant headway in replacing the RC-12 Guardrail with the HADES aircraft by Leidos. However, this was to increase the viability of ISR in the Army; DV transport aircraft are a substantially lower priority for replacement, especially since they pose no safety problems. 

Since it has been so long since the idea of replacing the C-12 was floated, let’s check in and see where it stands. 

The Aging Huron Fleet

The C-12 Huron has been the mainstay of in-house DV transportation for the U.S. Army for five decades now. Why does the Army have a designated fleet of hundreds of aircraft? Well, for one thing the Army is very big. But secondly, because the Army cannot outsource DV movements to airlines in the AOR.  

So, the Army (and the other branches to a much lesser degree) operates aircraft for DV movements to ensure that skilled combat pilots are handling the transportation of military leaders when they are in the AOR. 

C-12A Huron US Army at the Presidio

Age is the most telling part of why the C-12 is being replaced. The King Air is still in production today in several modernized and advanced forms, but the Beechcraft B200 that makes up the C-12 Huron fleet is getting old.  

One of the biggest drawbacks to the C-12 is why it was replaced by a jet for ISR work: altitude, range, and speed. The C-12 generally operates between FL250 and FL270, and cruises at 250 knots, give or take. It only has a maximum range of about 1,450 miles, so if you factor in density altitude and max gross weight, that number goes down. 

The Cessna Citation V was adopted as the UC-35B (UC-35D for the USMC) for this reason. However, it is not able to handle as austere of environments as the turboprop-powered Huron, and it costs substantially more per hour to operate. 

So, the Huron (and to a lesser degree the C-26) remain in service because there is nothing to replace them with that will do the job better, nor is there any budget to do it anyway. 

The Future Fixed Wing Utility Aircraft (FFWUA) Program

The Future Fixed Wing Utility Aircraft (FFWUA) program was initiated by the U.S. Army to address the growing need for a modern, versatile, and efficient replacement for its aging fleet of C-12 Huron aircraft. The C-12 Huron has been a workhorse for the Army but has reached the end of its operational lifecycle.

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Reference:

  1. DefenceTalk
  2. Defense News

Goals of the FFWUA Program

The first goal of the FFWUA is to bring a modern and technologically advanced aircraft to TRANSCOM that will perform well into the 21st century. 

The FFWUA requires that the aircraft have advanced avionics, state-of the art comms, and modern defensive suites of countermeasures for the ever-changing battlefields of the future. The FFWUA will be pressed into multiple roles, as the C-12 has done which means it will do including personnel transport, cargo movement, medical evacuation, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations.

As for the ISR component, this may be more secondary since the Army has contracted Leidos for ISR support. 

Of course, one of the major issues with aging aircraft is overall inefficiency. Aircraft have gotten substantially more efficient over the decades, with engine and propellor efficiency being held under a microscope. But it isn’t just the efficiency of new power and airframe improvements; it is the efficiency of reduced maintenance. 

Also, interoperability is a determining factor for the selection. Using the same aircraft as other military branches and allied forces is one of the best ways to keep costs down. It also is a way to significantly streamline the parts procurement process. 

The Contenders

What aircraft are in contention for the replacement?

This is actually a tough question because the replacement process has been tabled and shelved for so many years now (twelve) that aircraft have changed a fair amount in that time. 

One of the most obvious choices to replace the antiquated fleet of King Air 200s would be a modern version of the aircraft, like the Navy did with the T-44 replacement, the T-54. The Navy replaced very old King Air H90s, which are versions of the very first King Airs. The T-54 is a King Air B260, a highly modernized version of an old aircraft except the airframes are brand new, the engines are state of the art, as are the avionics. 

The King Air 360ER would be a great replacement for the B200s currently in use, with considerably better takeoff performance, cruise performance and range, and increased overall payload and capacity. 

For the purpose of the C-12, which the mission profile hasn’t changed a lot, a jet doesn’t make sense plus the Army already owns and operates a fleet of UC-35 Citations that are far from obsolete. 

The Shortlisted Finalists

So, the FFWUA is currently shelved because it basically keeps slipping down the ladder of priorities. The C-12s (and to a certain extent C-26s) in the Army fleet are still remarkably reliable, so there is no urgency to replace them. Since the project has been sitting for so many years without any movement, there aren’t really any shortlisted finalists. 

Of course, a betting man would probably wager on it being a modern King Air. We can’t say this for sure, of course, but that would be our guess. 

Open Questions and Challenges

Eventually the C-12 Huron will get phased out, it’s just a matter of when. Until then, they will soldier on. 

The reason the FFWUA keeps getting shelved is because this is the lowest priority in Army aviation. Dignified visitors can and often do fly commercial when TRANSCOM can’t guarantee a military flight, so it really wouldn’t change much except for transports in the AOR. But again, the C-12 fleet is highly reliable so there is not definite timeline for a replacement. 

Conclusion

The C-12 Huron is not getting replaced now or probably anytime in the near future. Even though they are incredibly reliable, they are getting old (many of the current fleet were built in the early 1980s). Old airplanes still fly fine, but they do need more maintenance and more parts.

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Greenwood Aerospace is a longtime expert in parts procurement particularly for the C-12 Huron program. We will continue to be your #1 partner in parts procurement and logistics for the Huron, along with the many other services we provide. 

Whether you need government contracting services or aircraft leasing, contact us today to see how Greenwood Aerospace can help you and your program thrive. 

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