Discover Spain’s €3.68bn Move to Field Hürjet Trainer Jets and Upgrade Airlift and Rotary Wings
{loadposition bannertop}
{loadposition sidebarpub}
Spain has approved a €3.68 billion financing plan to overhaul its air training, transport and helicopter fleets, including a new Hürjet-based training system. The investment strengthens Spain’s defense industry and reshapes how it trains future fighter pilots within Europe’s tightening airpower landscape.
Spain has set in motion a €3.68 billion, zero-interest public-loan package to re-equip its air services and, crucially, to stand up a Hürjet-based Advanced Integrated Flight Training System for the Air and Space Force. Formalized by Royal Decree 848/2025 and published in the BOLETÍN OFICIAL DEL ESTADO on 24 September, the measure gives Airbus Defence and Space and Airbus Helicopters España the financial runway to begin six programs spanning fast-jet training, tactical transport and multi-role helicopters. The move is strategically relevant because it reshapes how Spain generates combat-ready aircrews, locks key workshares inside the country, and accelerates deliveries amid tightening European demand for airpower.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
Spain will field a Hürjet based Advanced Integrated Flight Training System with simulators and support infrastructure, alongside added C295 tactical transports and new NH90 and H135 helicopters (Picture Sources: TAI / AIRBUS)
The centerpiece is Hürjet. Spain plans up to 45 aircraft to replace the F-5M in the advanced phase of the fast-jet pipeline, paired with a new, national training ecosystem of high-fidelity simulators, an embedded training suite and courseware optimized for fifth-generation tactics. As a supersonic LIFT platform capable of around Mach 1.2 and operations up to 45,000 ft, Hürjet closes the gap between basic training and frontline fighters by allowing realistic sensor-to-weapon employment in a cost-controlled environment. Program documentation also points to aerobatic-patrol and potential “Red Air” aggressor utility, expanding the aircraft’s contribution beyond the syllabus and easing pressure on combat squadrons. Basing at Talavera la Real ensures continuity for Spain’s fighter school while enabling a measured transition from legacy fleets.
Industrialization and budgeting for Hürjet are designed to anchor sovereignty. Aircraft will be produced by Turkish Aerospace and then “Spanishized” by Airbus Defence and Space in Spain, integrating nationally sourced avionics and support systems and establishing a domestic conversion and sustainment line. Deliveries begin in 2028 to seed the 2029/2030 training course, with full Spanish-configuration jets from 2031. Financing is sequenced through zero-interest state loans, €1.04 billion pre-financed for the Hürjet line within a wider €3.68 billion package, reimbursed as defense contracts progress. The BOE framework allows limited advances ahead of final procurement signatures but also sets safeguards, including the return of advances if contracts are not formalized by a fixed deadline, aligning urgency with fiscal discipline.
The fixed-wing renewal continues with 18 C295-based airframes for the Integrated Transport Pilot Training System. These will replace CN-235s at the Military Air Transport School and C-212s at the Parachute School, creating maximum commonality with the operational C295 fleet. Twelve aircraft will cover training and tactical transport for passengers, paratroops and cargo; six will specialize in parachute and cargo roles. Typical C295 attributes, short take-off and landing from roughly 700-meter strips, payloads up to about eight tonnes, endurance enabling lengthy training profiles, make the type a pragmatic, low-risk choice. Final assembly in Seville sustains a mature Spanish industrial base and simplifies life-cycle support.
Rotary-wing capability is addressed through three lines. A third phase of NH90 procurement adds 32 medium multi-role helicopters assembled in Albacete, apportioned across the Army for tactical manoeuvre, the Air and Space Force for SAR/CSAR, and the Navy for amphibious lift with growth paths toward maritime missionization. H135 Phase 2 brings 13 additional light helicopters with IFR and NVG capability, extending the training and utility fleet recapitalized since 2021 and supporting embarked operations. HELIPO, the largest by fleet effect, targets 54 light twin-engine helicopters for the Army to replace EC135s, widely understood to align with the H145M class even if the decree remains model-agnostic; deliveries are slated across 2028–2034 to smooth entry-into-service. The HACES line introduces six H175s for Wing 48 to refresh state-action, SAR and transport missions with modern comms, navigation and safety systems.
Advantages cut across operations, budgets and industry. Operationally, Spain shifts to a training architecture with higher synthetic-to-live ratios and a supersonic LIFT bridge that better prepares pilots for Eurofighter and future FCAS employment. Transport and helicopter fleets gain availability, interoperability and communications security, improving sortie generation for domestic and expeditionary tasks. Financially, zero-interest, multi-year loans de-risk long lead times and preserve supplier slots without front-loading defense outlays. Industrially, conversion, assembly and MRO work in Seville and Albacete deepen sovereign competencies and distribute high-value tasks to Spanish suppliers in avionics, EW, mission systems and structures, with Airbus acting as prime integrator under national oversight.
Strategic implications are direct. Geopolitically, the package raises Spain’s readiness and training throughput at a moment when Europe is re-arming, while signalling commitment to long-term airpower alongside allies. Geostrategically, it embeds Spain more firmly in European supply chains yet keeps key levers at home through domestic integration and support. Militarily, it retires obsolescence risks in the 2030s, standardizes fleets around common types, and introduces a flexible trainer that can serve aggressor and public-diplomacy roles. On contracting status, the BOE authorizes immediate loan disbursement to Airbus Defence and Space and Airbus Helicopters España to launch work now, with procurement contracts being finalized in parallel; if timelines slip, safeguards ensure advances are clawed back, an approach that prioritizes speed without abandoning control.
Spain’s decision is more than a list of purchases; it is a coherent rebuild of how the country trains, transports and sustains in the air domain. By centering the Hürjet as the spine of a modern pilot-production system and pairing it with pragmatic airlift and helicopter renewals, Madrid positions its forces for higher output and lower life-cycle risk, while anchoring critical skills and tooling on national soil. The policy choice recorded in the BOE translates directly into future readiness: a training pipeline fit for contemporary air combat, rotary-wing fleets aligned to joint needs, and an industrial base structured to support both.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.
{loadposition bannertop}
{loadposition sidebarpub}
Spain has approved a €3.68 billion financing plan to overhaul its air training, transport and helicopter fleets, including a new Hürjet-based training system. The investment strengthens Spain’s defense industry and reshapes how it trains future fighter pilots within Europe’s tightening airpower landscape.
Spain has set in motion a €3.68 billion, zero-interest public-loan package to re-equip its air services and, crucially, to stand up a Hürjet-based Advanced Integrated Flight Training System for the Air and Space Force. Formalized by Royal Decree 848/2025 and published in the BOLETÍN OFICIAL DEL ESTADO on 24 September, the measure gives Airbus Defence and Space and Airbus Helicopters España the financial runway to begin six programs spanning fast-jet training, tactical transport and multi-role helicopters. The move is strategically relevant because it reshapes how Spain generates combat-ready aircrews, locks key workshares inside the country, and accelerates deliveries amid tightening European demand for airpower.
Spain will field a Hürjet based Advanced Integrated Flight Training System with simulators and support infrastructure, alongside added C295 tactical transports and new NH90 and H135 helicopters (Picture Sources: TAI / AIRBUS)
The centerpiece is Hürjet. Spain plans up to 45 aircraft to replace the F-5M in the advanced phase of the fast-jet pipeline, paired with a new, national training ecosystem of high-fidelity simulators, an embedded training suite and courseware optimized for fifth-generation tactics. As a supersonic LIFT platform capable of around Mach 1.2 and operations up to 45,000 ft, Hürjet closes the gap between basic training and frontline fighters by allowing realistic sensor-to-weapon employment in a cost-controlled environment. Program documentation also points to aerobatic-patrol and potential “Red Air” aggressor utility, expanding the aircraft’s contribution beyond the syllabus and easing pressure on combat squadrons. Basing at Talavera la Real ensures continuity for Spain’s fighter school while enabling a measured transition from legacy fleets.
Industrialization and budgeting for Hürjet are designed to anchor sovereignty. Aircraft will be produced by Turkish Aerospace and then “Spanishized” by Airbus Defence and Space in Spain, integrating nationally sourced avionics and support systems and establishing a domestic conversion and sustainment line. Deliveries begin in 2028 to seed the 2029/2030 training course, with full Spanish-configuration jets from 2031. Financing is sequenced through zero-interest state loans, €1.04 billion pre-financed for the Hürjet line within a wider €3.68 billion package, reimbursed as defense contracts progress. The BOE framework allows limited advances ahead of final procurement signatures but also sets safeguards, including the return of advances if contracts are not formalized by a fixed deadline, aligning urgency with fiscal discipline.
The fixed-wing renewal continues with 18 C295-based airframes for the Integrated Transport Pilot Training System. These will replace CN-235s at the Military Air Transport School and C-212s at the Parachute School, creating maximum commonality with the operational C295 fleet. Twelve aircraft will cover training and tactical transport for passengers, paratroops and cargo; six will specialize in parachute and cargo roles. Typical C295 attributes, short take-off and landing from roughly 700-meter strips, payloads up to about eight tonnes, endurance enabling lengthy training profiles, make the type a pragmatic, low-risk choice. Final assembly in Seville sustains a mature Spanish industrial base and simplifies life-cycle support.
Rotary-wing capability is addressed through three lines. A third phase of NH90 procurement adds 32 medium multi-role helicopters assembled in Albacete, apportioned across the Army for tactical manoeuvre, the Air and Space Force for SAR/CSAR, and the Navy for amphibious lift with growth paths toward maritime missionization. H135 Phase 2 brings 13 additional light helicopters with IFR and NVG capability, extending the training and utility fleet recapitalized since 2021 and supporting embarked operations. HELIPO, the largest by fleet effect, targets 54 light twin-engine helicopters for the Army to replace EC135s, widely understood to align with the H145M class even if the decree remains model-agnostic; deliveries are slated across 2028–2034 to smooth entry-into-service. The HACES line introduces six H175s for Wing 48 to refresh state-action, SAR and transport missions with modern comms, navigation and safety systems.
Advantages cut across operations, budgets and industry. Operationally, Spain shifts to a training architecture with higher synthetic-to-live ratios and a supersonic LIFT bridge that better prepares pilots for Eurofighter and future FCAS employment. Transport and helicopter fleets gain availability, interoperability and communications security, improving sortie generation for domestic and expeditionary tasks. Financially, zero-interest, multi-year loans de-risk long lead times and preserve supplier slots without front-loading defense outlays. Industrially, conversion, assembly and MRO work in Seville and Albacete deepen sovereign competencies and distribute high-value tasks to Spanish suppliers in avionics, EW, mission systems and structures, with Airbus acting as prime integrator under national oversight.
Strategic implications are direct. Geopolitically, the package raises Spain’s readiness and training throughput at a moment when Europe is re-arming, while signalling commitment to long-term airpower alongside allies. Geostrategically, it embeds Spain more firmly in European supply chains yet keeps key levers at home through domestic integration and support. Militarily, it retires obsolescence risks in the 2030s, standardizes fleets around common types, and introduces a flexible trainer that can serve aggressor and public-diplomacy roles. On contracting status, the BOE authorizes immediate loan disbursement to Airbus Defence and Space and Airbus Helicopters España to launch work now, with procurement contracts being finalized in parallel; if timelines slip, safeguards ensure advances are clawed back, an approach that prioritizes speed without abandoning control.
Spain’s decision is more than a list of purchases; it is a coherent rebuild of how the country trains, transports and sustains in the air domain. By centering the Hürjet as the spine of a modern pilot-production system and pairing it with pragmatic airlift and helicopter renewals, Madrid positions its forces for higher output and lower life-cycle risk, while anchoring critical skills and tooling on national soil. The policy choice recorded in the BOE translates directly into future readiness: a training pipeline fit for contemporary air combat, rotary-wing fleets aligned to joint needs, and an industrial base structured to support both.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.
