Airbus DS delivers first C295 MSA for Spain
The first of eight C295 MSA aircraft was handed over to the Spanish Air and Space Force on 24 June 2026. (Airbus)
Airbus Defence and Space (DS) has delivered the first C295 Maritime Surveillance Aircraft (MSA) to the Spanish Air and Space Force, the company announced on 24 June 2026.
The first of eight C295 MSA aircraft ordered alongside the same number of C295 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) in December 2023 was formally handed over at the site of Airbus Defence and Space's (DS) production facility in Seville.
“Airbus Defence and Space has delivered the first C295 in search and rescue (SAR) configuration to the Spanish Air and Space Force. The aircraft, assembled at the Airbus final assembly line in San Pablo, Seville, Spain, will perform its ferry flight in the coming days to join the 46th Wing at Gando Air Base in Gran Canaria,” the manufacturer said.
In Spanish Air and Space Force service, the C295 MSA will replace the CN235 Vigilancia Marítima (VIGMA) platform, and will be primarily equipped for maritime and overland operations such as anti-smuggling and anti-drug trafficking operations, as well as national and international SAR missions.
Airbus DS will deliver two more C295 MSA aircraft in 2026, alongside the first two C295 aircraft in transport configuration from the Spanish Ministry of Defence's 2025 order of 18 aircraft under its Air Mobility Training Technologies (ITS-T) programme. The delivery of the first C295 MPA to Spain, billed by the company as being the most complex mission variant of the C295 to date, is planned for 2028.
Go beyond the headlines - with direct links to interconnected entities
Get full access to validated equipment, military capabilities, and market insights.
