CN-235-300: The Mexican Navy’s highest tech aircraft

The CN-235 is an aircraft manufactured by Airbus: it is pressurized, twin-engine, and turboprop-powered, with a high-wing configuration and retractable landing gear, equipped with state-of-the-art avionics and mission equipment that integrates surveillance radar signals and a FLIR camera, achieving a high degree of efficiency in maritime surveillance and search operations.

Among the features of these aircraft, their approximate eight-hour endurance and a cruising speed of 180 knots stand out. They also provide maritime patrol capabilities, enhanced detection capabilities, and greater efficiency in search and surveillance operations, as well as increased security levels within territorial waters and the exclusive economic zone.

The first CN-235-300 Persuader aircraft—six in total for the Mexican Navy—arrived brand-new in 2010; four of them were donated by the US government through the Merida Initiative, and the others were purchased by the Mexican government.

At the start of their service, they were assigned to what was then the Fourth Naval Patrol Squadron (Cuarescapat) at the Tapachula Naval Air Base (Basantap) in Chiapas. They currently operate from the same base but are now part of Naval Air Squadron 1012.

The aircraft are equipped with two General Electric CT7-9C3 turboprop engines, which allow them to fly at a cruising speed of 248 knots at an altitude of 25,000 feet, and have a range of 2,350 nautical miles. The Persuaders are operated by two pilots and at least three surveillance system operators.