During the late 1960s, the Spanish Air Force was still operating a number of outdated piston-engined transports. In order to meet the Spanish Air Force's needs to modernise its transport force, CASA proposed the C-212, a twin engined 18 seat transport aircraft that would be capable of fulfilling a variety of military roles, including passenger transport, ambulance aircraft and paratroop carrier, while also being suitable for civil use. The first prototype flew on 26 March 1971. In 1974, the Spanish Air Force decided to acquire the Aviocar to update its fleet. Airlines took note of the type's success with the military, so CASA developed a commercial version, the first examples of which were delivered in July 1975. In August 2006 a total of 30 CASA C-212 aircraft (all variants) remain in airline service around the world. The -400 was introduced in 1997 with a glass cockpit and more powerful engines.[6] In 2010, Airbus Military said it could no longer afford to produce the C212 in Europe and after production in Seville slowed to four in two years, the last C-212 produced in Spain was delivered in late December 2012 to the Vietnam Marine Police. Over 42 years, 477 aircraft have been produced for 92 operators. he C-212 has a high-mounted wing, a boxy fuselage, and a conventional tail. The tricycle undercarriage is non-retractable. It has space for 21–28 passengers depending on configuration. Since the C-212 does not have a pressurized fuselage, it is limited to relatively low-flight-level airline usage (below 10,000 ft (3,000 m) MSL). It is thus ideal for short legs and regional airline service. In Australia, the type is operated by the Australian Antarctic Division. For more details including the 15 variants, click here.
