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Riiiight.. and and the A400m’s 27 tons REALLY fills that gap up, doesn’t it?

Lockheed thinks so Lockheed Explores Niche For Widebody C-130

IMHO Lockheed are the delusional party here. By 2020 when it gets around to putting the C-130XL on the market, customers looking for a 30 ton freighter not as cramped as the C-130 will have selected A-400M, or Kawasaki C-X. Both faster than the plus size herc.

By 2020...customers looking for a 30 ton freighter...will have selected A-400M

Some maybe but customers don't move that fast. That is only 11 years off and airbus has been working on the A400m for almost that long already.

Since Lockmart already has many 130s in service and has done the development then the wide body would be cheaper overall to develop than the A400. So they need fewer buyers to pay off the costs. The objective is to keep the 130 plant operating and the thousands of workers there working. That is the same reason they made the 130j even though no one had asked for it.It was a big gamble and it took them a while to get many orders.

There is nothing delusional about it. With the hand they are dealt they can look at a much bigger midsize plane that will take much longer to develop, do the 130 thing, or do nothing. Going the route of an all new plane is a much bigger gamble.

An upsize herc would only have to sell a few to the US to be a success and there is little chance of the US buying either of the other two. Will it be the 'best plane' out there? Maybe not. Will it sell? Probably.