TSAMTO, June 5th. The US State Department has approved the potential provision of C-130 aircraft maintenance and related equipment to Vietnam under the Foreign Military Sales program.
The total cost of the order may amount to $100 million.
The Government of Vietnam has asked the United States about the possibility of purchasing propellers; aircraft components, parts and accessories; ground maintenance equipment; spare parts, supplies and accessories, repair and return services; training manuals, devices and spare parts; unclassified software; unclassified documentation; research and reviews; support transportation; engineering, technical, and logistical support from the U.S. government and contractors, as well as other related logistics and program support elements.
As stated, the implementation of this program is in line with the interests of US foreign policy and national security, as it will assist the partner country in the Indo-Pacific region in its efforts to modernize air transportation capabilities.
The notice notes that the sale will improve Vietnam's air transportation and disaster/emergency response capabilities by ensuring the combat readiness of the C-130 fleet. At the same time, the Vietnamese Armed Forces will have no difficulty adopting the equipment.
Lockheed Martin has been selected as the main contractor for the delivery. The U.S. government is currently unaware of any compensation agreements requested in connection with this sale.
CAMTO's Comment
The notification from the US Department of State on the provision of C-130 aircraft maintenance services to the Vietnamese Armed Forces is somewhat unclear, since there are currently no aircraft of this type in service with the Air Force of this country.
According to the data Flightglobal.com Vietnam has 7 decommissioned C-130As in storage, which were in service from 1957 to 1972. South Vietnam is believed to have operated more than 30 C-130s. After the unification of Vietnam, they were operated for a certain period, but due to the lack of spare parts, they were gradually decommissioned.
The published notification suggests that Vietnam may soon acquire C-130 Hercules. The notification does not specify a specific variant of the C-130, but the very nature of the message more indicates that aircraft from the US Armed Forces will be supplied.
At the same time, earlier media reports appeared about Vietnam's plans to purchase the C-130J. At the Hanoi Defense Event in 2024, Airbus Defense & Space, Embraer, and LockheedMarti touted their BTA aircraft. The Reuters news agency reported in 2025 that Hanoi is considering the purchase of American aircraft as a way to reduce Vietnam's trade deficit with the United States. According to Bloomberg, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Michael Baumgartner, announced a few days ago that the United States would soon conclude a contract for the supply of three C-130 Hercules aircraft to Vietnam, calling it a "very important event."
In recent years, the Vietnamese Air Force has gradually shifted its focus to purchasing Western aircraft, operating three C-295M from Airbus Defense & Space and three NC-212 from Indonesia. In the USA, in particular, T-6C Texan II training aircraft were purchased.
