Lockheed Martin has entered into an agreement (known as an Undefinitized Contract Action) with the U.S. Government for the Foreign Military Sale of the first two of 25 potential C-130J Super Hercules airlifters for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Specifically, this contract action is for the purchase of two KC-130J refueling tankers.

“Here we see another nation recapitalizing with the proven C-130J. As a legacy C-130 operator, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is familiar with the workhorse capabilities of the Hercules. With the addition of C-130Js, Saudi Arabia will have a proven asset that provides unequaled results -- both regionally and around the world,” said Chris Antone, Vice President of Business Development for Saudi Arabia at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the 16th country to choose the proven C-130J Super Hercules to meet its airlift needs. The C-130J is the standard by which all other airlift is measured in terms of availability, flexibility and reliability. C-130Js currently are deployed in two combat theaters where they operate at a very high tempo efficiently and reliably.

In non-combat, but equally harsh environments, C-130Js are often the first to support humanitarian missions such as search and rescue, aerial firefighting in the U.S., and delivering relief supplies after earthquakes, hurricanes, typhoons and tsunamis around the world. Recently, the C-130J worldwide fleet surpassed 1 million flight hours, which were logged beginning with the C-130J's first flight on April 5, 1996 through April 30, 2013.