The Brazilian Air Force Receives Its Sixth C-390 Millennium Military Tactical Transport Aircraft
Embraer, a Brazilian aircraft manufacturer, has delivered the sixth aircraft in the C-390 Millennium Multi-Mission Medium Transport Aircraft Project to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). This C-390 was the first to be delivered in the type’s full operational capability (FOC) configuration, the certification of which confirms that it meets all the requirements defined by the FAB and can carry out all missions for which it was designed. The sixth transport aircraft has been received by FAB’s First Troop Transport Group (1st GTT), which is based at Anápolis Air Force Base in central-east Brazil.
Bosco da Costa Junior, President and CEO of Embraer’s Defense and Security, said: “It is special to deliver the first aircraft in the FOC configuration to FAB. Although FAB has already deployed the aircraft in various different missions, inside Brazil and abroad, it will now be able to fully and definitively take advantage of the full capacity of the C-390, showing the world everything that this aircraft can deliver.”
The delivery took place under a $1.38 billion contract signed in 2014 between FAB and Embraer, which included 28 C-390 aircraft and a logistical support package. The Brazilian Air Force and Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer later decided to reduce the order from 28 to 22 aircraft. Embraer delivered the first C-390 aircraft to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) in September 2019 during a ceremony at Anápolis Air Base. In November of the same year, the Brazilian Air Force received the second aircraft under the deal. The third aircraft in the series was delivered to the Brazilian Air Force in June 2020, and the fourth aircraft was delivered in December 2020. Neither the FAB nor Embraer made a statement about when the fifth aircraft in the series was put into service. The company plans to complete the C-390 Millennium Multi-Mission Medium Transport Aircraft Program by delivering the remaining 16 aircraft to the Brazilian Air Force by 2028.
The C-390 Millennium is a multi-mission medium-sized tactical military transport aircraft capable of performing a variety of military and civilian missions such as humanitarian aid, medical evacuation, search and rescue, firefighting, cargo and troop transport, airborne and air supply operations. The air refueling version of the aircraft is known as the KC-390, and the Brazilian Air Force currently has six of them in service. Furthermore, these aircraft have been ordered by Portugal and Hungary, both NATO members. Additionally, the Netherlands announced that it has selected the C-390 Millennium to replace its current and aging C-130H Hercules fleet in 2022. Argentina, Chile, Colombia, the Czech Republic, and India are among the potential customers for the C-390 Millennium.