Wellington, July 14 NZPA - Hamilton-based aircraft-maker Pacific Aerospace is lobbying Defence Minister Wayne Mapp to have its single-engine turbo-prop P750 aircraft included in the Government's defence white paper due to be completed in the next three months.

The Royal New Zealand Air Force already uses the two-seat Pacific Aerospace CT-4 as a training aircraft, but international aviation news website FlightGlobal today reported Pacific chief executive Damian Camp hoped the air force would buy 10-seat P-750s and use them in New Zealand and the South Pacific.

A Defence Ministry assessment and three companion studies are expect to have been sent to Cabinet by the end of this month, and the white paper is scheduled for completion by the end of September.

Mr Mapp, who is also Associate Economic Development Minister, noted on July 1 that Pacific Aerospace was a well-established manufacturer "who developed the amazing PAC 750 XSTOL that has sold world-wide and attracted the attention of the US military".

"Across my own portfolio responsibilities of research, defence and associate economic development I am promoting the benefits of getting in behind our innovative companies and supporting their expansion," he said.

Pacific Aerospace has also been promoting the P-750 in response to a draft request for proposals for the US Air Force's contract for fixed-wing light mobility aircraft to be supplied to the Afghan national army air corps.

Dr Mapp said in June that the air force was unable to take part in two overseas exercises this year because it didn't have enough planes, due to delays in upgrading work on Hercules C130 and Orion aircraft.

He said that in future there would be only one plane at a time taken out of action.

"When you're running small fleets there's certainly a risk in taking two aircraft out and that's not something I intend to see happen again," he said.

Despite this, the three aircraft involved in Operation Tropic Twilight -- with more than 300 defence force staff in Tuvalu, about 3700km north of New Zealand -- broke down last week.