Ugly, but functional. Still, what does it say about the state of the U.S. aircraft industry when Boeing, the 800 lb. gorilla of the transport aircraft business, has to offer a Soviet-era aircraft to meet a government requirement?
That the current U.S. military requirements are the same requirements the Russians were designing to for years?
Really, that's not being sarcastic. Engineering design is driven by user requirements. The U.S. military is placing increased emphasis on rapid theater movement under austere conditions as a force multiplier, thus the emphasis on STOL performance into unimproved fields with limited TALCE support. As it turns out, the Russians already have some experience in designing in these environments.
We could (and have, in the past) design a new aircraft to meet these requirements, but it does pay to consider existing (even foreign) designs which may meet the user requirements.
That it is shaving a few bucks in order to win a contract?