Embraer's C-390 Millennium Multi-Mission Aircraft Receives FOC Certification

Dark/Light Mode (07/04/23)  Embraer's C-390 Millennium multi-mission aircraft has received the Full Operational Capability (FOC) certification.

Issued by the Institute of Industrial Development and Coordination (IFI in Portuguese), the Brazilian body responsible for certifying aircraft for military purposes, the FOC Certificate confirms that the project meets all the requirements defined by the Força Aérea Brasileira (Brazilian Air Force / FAB) and that the aircraft can carry out all the missions for which it was designed.

“This certificate places the C-390 in a select group of aircraft in the world,” said Bosco da Costa Junior, President and CEO of Embraer Defense and Security. “It is an unique moment in Embraer's history. The C-390 is redefining the military airlift and refueling space, challenging the thinking behind current and future generation platforms. Air forces around the world are focused on matching their ever-evolving operational needs with their budgets, seeking a platform that can perform multiple missions, recognizing that today's choice will affect their operational capabilities tomorrow.”

Embraer KC-390. Picture by Steven Howard of TravelNewsAsia.com

As part of the development and certification process, around 3,500 hours were flown on the prototype aircraft under the most varied operating conditions, and another 85,000 hours were performed using laboratory test benches and devices.

The C-390 can carry 26 tons and fly at 470 knots. It is designed to perform a wide range of missions such as transporting and dropping cargo and troops, medical evacuation, search and rescue, firefighting and humanitarian missions. It can also operate on temporary or unpaved runways (i.e. including packed earth, soil and gravel).

In its refueling version, the aircraft can not only supply fuel to another aircraft but can even receive fuel from another KC-390 using pods installed under the wings.

“This is the KC-390, the aircraft that embodies the true meaning of the word “perseverance”. Wherever it is, there will be the Brazilian State; there will be the order and progress of a nation that aligns itself with the idea that the full development of democracy cannot dispense with inviolable sovereignty. Finally, I wish that these feelings of “brazilianness” and pride, which we now experience, will emerge in each citizen, when contemplating the skies and verifying that the “wings that protect and integrate the country” and Embraer are heading united in the purpose of ensuring a solid future with the strategic stature of our beloved Brazil,” said Air Force Commander, Lieutenant-Brigadier Marcelo Kanitz Damasceno at the ceremony.

Embraer has also commenced the delivery process of the sixth C-390 to FAB, the first in the FOC configuration. The aircraft which have already been delivered to the Brazilian Air Force will be updated to have the certification, and all aircraft to be exported will also have the certification.

FAB's current fleet of five aircraft, all in the aerial refueling version, has already accumulated more than 8,200 flight hours.

The C-390 Millennium has orders from Portugal and Hungary, both NATO member countries. Netherlands, also a member of NATO, selected the C-390 Millennium in 2022.

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