Two retired German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Transall C-160D transport aircraft are being reconfigured as aerial firefighting platforms, six years after their retirement. The conversion project is led by Total Aeronautical Services GmbH (TAS), a Lower Saxony-based aviation company specialising in aircraft conversion.
The first converted aircraft has been allocated the civil registration D-AMJT, making it the first C-160 Transall in German aviation history authorised to operate under civil registry. Germany's Federal Aviation Office (LBA) and the Bundeswehr procurement agency (BAAINBw) are supporting the project. The conversion has reportedly reached an advanced stage, with intensive preparations for the initial test flight underway.
The aircraft are being equipped with a firefighting system developed by Australian firm Helitak Firefighting Equipment. A main deck tank can hold up to 14 tonnes of water or fire retardant, released through equipment fitted to the underside of the fuselage to keep it close to the plane's centre of gravity. The system can drop 3,000 litres per second, and the tank can be refilled on the ground in about three minutes.
TAS stated that the first of the two aircraft is due to enter service in time for the 2027 European firefighting season. TAS Managing Director Maren Reese said the urgency and practical impact of repurposing proven military aviation hardware was becoming increasingly important as the wildfire issue increases across Europe year-on-year.
Helitak acquired three former Luftwaffe C-160Ds in 2023 and has already fitted one with its firefighting system, performing a full water-drop demonstration at Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport (WTB) in March 2026. The high-wing C-160D twin-turboprop is considered by national authorities as the ideal airframe for aerial firefighting due to its substantial payload capacity, low-speed handling, and ability to operate from short, unpaved airfields.
