How can Lockheed compete with the Airbus A-400M

With the recent financial agreement of EADS with the A-400M partner countries, the new military cargo plane is off to production and deployment.

And the A-400M will become a big threat to the Lockheed C-130J, even in the US Air Force cargo fleet.

Lockheed can compete with the A-400M in three ways:

1. Upsize and update the C-130J
The main problem identified with the C-130J is that it cannot carry the Stryker LAV on a rollon/rolloff basis. But even given this constraint, Lockheed claims that the present C-130J can already transport more than 90% of the US Air Force requirements.
In order to be able to carry the Stryker LAV on a rollon/rolloff basis, the C-130J fuselage can be upsized. The wheelwell can be moved so as to enable the whole fuselage interior diameter available for cargo use. The wingbox can also be raised above the fuselage interior diameter to increase interior cargo area in the height dimension.
With these fuselage changes, the engine and propellers need also to be uprated to increase the payload capacity of the aircraft.
Other modifications may include:
- new avionics
- new materials to reduce empty weight
- more efficient production process

2. New C-130 version
Lockheed has the C-130XL proposal, pictured below, featuring a larger fuselage. It is a more radical modification than option 1 above.

Lockheed can use its experience in developing the Advanced Composite Cargo Aircraft (ACCA) (shown below) based on the Dornier Do-328JET, to develop the C-130XL in composite materials.
As in option 1 C-130 version, new engines/propellers, new avionics, efficient production processes, will have to be implemented. The new C-130 version will be the most capital intensive among the different options.


3. Cooperate with Antonov in the An-70 cargo plane

Lockheed can cooperate with Antonov in putting the An-70 into serial production in the U.S. using mostly U.S. components. The two companies can each supply a specified market territory and each others home countries. They can also share specified intellectual properties of the An-70 development.
Such an arrangement will certainly need to break down psychological barriers among the US Air Force personnel and generally, among US citizens, in order to push through.