U.S. Coast Guard Grounds Fleet of C-27J Aircraft

The entire fleet of 14 medium range surveillance aircraft have 'cracks of varying degrees,' the Coast Guard said.

Wednesday, December 06, 2023 at 04:14 PM ET

Verified

The C-27J Spartan medium range surveillance aircraft CGNR 2711 sits on the tarmac at Air Station Sacramento, California. [Courtesy: U.S. Coast Guard]

Key Takeaways:

The U.S. Coast Guard has grounded its entire fleet of 14 C-27J Spartan fixed-wing surveillance aircraft.
The grounding follows a manufacturer directive from Leonardo to inspect for structural cracks, which were subsequently found in all USCG C-27Js.
These aircraft are critical for various missions, including disaster response, drug/migrant interdictions, and search and rescue.
Leonardo has already identified an on-site repair solution that is not expected to significantly impact planned aircraft operations.

See a mistake? Contact us.

The U.S. Coast Guard has grounded its fleet of C-27J Spartan fixed wing surveillance aircraft following a call by manufacturer Leonardo directing operators to inspect for cracks.

The medium range surveillance aircraft are used to perform disaster response, drug and migrant interdictions, and search and rescue missions.