The CASA/IPTN CN-235 is a medium-range twin-engined transport aircraft that was jointly developed by Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA) of Spain and Indonesian manufacturer IPTN, as a regional airliner and military transport. Its primary military roles include maritime patrol, surveillance, and air transport. Its largest user is Turkey, which has 59 aircraft. The project was a joint venture between Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA) and Indonesian Aerospace (PT. Dirgantara Indonesia), formerly known as IPTN, which formed Airtech International to manage the programme. The partnership applied only to the Series 10 and Series 100/110, with later versions being developed independently. Over 230 of all versions of CN-235 are in service and have accumulated more than 500,000 flight hours. Design began in January 1980 with the first flight on 11 November 1983. Spanish and Indonesian certification was on 20 June 1986; the first flight of the production aircraft was on 19 August 1986 and CASA's FAA type approval was granted on 3 December 1986. The aircraft entered service on 1 March 1988. Although the CN-235 was initially designed as a military transport, it was also offered as a commercial airliner. However, it did not achieve much success in this role compared to competing 50-seat commuter aircraft such as the Fokker50, ATR 42 and De Havilland Canada DHC-8. Iberia LAE, Spain's flag carrier, bought four CN-235s from CASA for regional routes, and in 1992 Aerolíneas Argentinas (then also a subsidiary of Iberia) ordered two aircraft to be operated by its subsidiary, Austral. In 2015, Indonesian Aerospace announced that they are currently planning a new variant of CN-235 called N-245 that will be designed specially for civil operation and able to carry up to 60 passengers. Previously also known as CN-235NG, this variant planned to be fully launched after Indonesian Aerospace N-219 project is done and expected to be fully certified in 2019. Further planned development is N-270, a stretched version of N-245 that able to carry up to 70–90 passengers and planned to be developed between 2019–2024. For more details of operational history, operators and variants, click here.
