The French government appears to have accelerated their procurement of Pilatus PC-21 advanced training aircraft according to the contract holders Babock Mission Critical Services.

Babcock have announced that all seventeen aircraft on order will be delivered within the next eighteen months. The first few PC-21s have already been sighted at the Pilatus factory at Stans Buochs in Switzerland and flight testing has begun on the French aircraft.

The French government awarded Babcock an $600 million, 11 year contract in 2016 to procure the trainers for the French Air Force.