The Hungarian government has signed a contract with Brazil’s Embraer for the purchase of two KC-390 Millennium aircraft.
The aircraft will boost the Hungarian defense forces’ capabilities in tactical airlift, air-to-air refueling and medical evacuation roles as well as in other missions of public interest.
Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2023.
“Following the procurement of personnel air transport capabilities in 2018, we will see the arrival of KC-390 aircraft to Hungary in 2023-24, able to deliver large military loads in an operational environment, as well as providing air-to-air refueling services. We are acquiring a multi-role transport fleet for the Hungarian defense forces to fulfill the widest possible range of tasks within the national framework, in a sovereign way,” said Gáspár Maróth, government commissioner responsible for defense development.
Hungary previously purchased two Airbus A319 transport aircraft to replace the Soviet An-26 planes which retired this year after 46 years of service.
“Hungary is the second European nation and NATO operator to select the C-390 Millennium, a highly capable aircraft that offers excellent productivity through unrivalled combination of speed, payload and rapid reconfigurability for multi-mission operations,” said Jackson Schneider, President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security.
The KC-390 for Hungary will be the first in the world with the intensive care unit in its configuration, an essential feature to perform humanitarian missions. The aircraft is capable of performing different types of military and civilian missions including humanitarian support, medical evacuation, search and rescue, cargo and troops transport, precision cargo drop, paratroopers operations and AAR. These KC-390 are NATO compatible, not only in terms of its hardware but also in its avionics and communications configuration. The KC-390 probe and drogue refueling system can refuel the Hungarian JAS 39 Gripen as well as other aircraft that use the same technology.
