The second of a total of five aircraft of this type ordered by the Portuguese Government from the Brazilian company Embraer, which will allow “the development of operational missions” by the Air Force.
A KC-390 aircraft was delivered this Wednesday by the Brazilian Embraer to the Portuguese Air Force (FAP), the second of a total of five, the company announced in a statement.
The platform has equipment that meets NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) standards already integrated into the aircraft and meets the requirements established by the National Aeronautical Authority (AAN) of Portugal,” reads the statement from the company.
The first aircraft entered service in October 2023 at the Beja air base.
Quoted in the statement, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General Cartaxo Alves, states that with the delivery of this second aircraft, the branch “will accelerate the integration of this differentiated capability in the Portuguese Air Force, allowing the development of operational missions and the preparation of more crew members and maintenance technicians for the future to come.”
For the general, this second aircraft brings “added value to the mission of Portugal, its partners and alliances.”
The president and general director of Embraer Defense & Security, Bosco da Costa Júnior, also cited in the statement, highlights that “the second delivery of the KC-390 Millennium to the Portuguese Air Force is another important step in the internationalization process” of this aircraft that is increasing “its recognition in the market, particularly among NATO nations”.
The KC-390, acquired by Portugal from the Brazilian company Embraer, have components produced in the national territory, in the two former factories that the Brazilian aeronautical construction company owned in Évora (now owned by another company) and in OGMA Indústria Aeronáutica de Portugal .
Furthermore, the design of this aircraft involved the investment of 650 thousand hours of Portuguese engineering work, in work developed by CEiiA.
Portugal agreed, in 2019, to buy five aircraft from the Brazilian Embraer (which it will deliver in phases) with the aim of replacing the Hercules C-130, for a value of 827 million euros.
The agreement with Embraer also includes the acquisition of a flight simulator and the maintenance of the aircraft during the first 12 years of its life.
Source: Observadora
