Saudi begins building military aircraft

Saudi Arabia yesterday announced that it plans to expand into the field of building military aircraft, AlKhaleejOnline reported.

This comes after Ukraine rolled out its new AN-132 aircraft, which was built in partnership with Saudi Arabia. The kingdom owns 50 per cent of the intellectual property.

The AN-132 is an advanced military transport aircraft. It is a multi-purpose aircraft and equipped with the latest engines and capable of competing with its counterparts in terms of the rate of fuel consumption, and the ability to take off and land in different weather conditions. It is also designed to carry up to eight tonnes of cargo at altitudes of up to 28,000ft.

Ukranian President Petro Poroshenko estimated the world will need about 260 AN-132 aircraft from now up until 2035. “Very few countries can celebrate such holiday as the launch of a new aircraft model,” Ukraine Today quoted him saying said according to Ukranian news website.

The aircraft was built in Ukraine, but there are plans to shift the manufacturing to the Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia.