Austria’s Ministry of Defense has officially chosen the Embraer C-390 tactical transporter as the successor to its current C-130 fleet, making Austria the newest operator of this aircraft model.
Embraer, the Brazilian manufacturer of the C-390 “Millennium”, announced in a brief statement on September 20th its commitment to assisting the Austrian Ministry of Defense and Air Force in fulfilling their procurement needs, as Austria joins Brazil, Portugal, Hungary, and the Netherlands in the roster of existing or upcoming operators of this aircraft model.
The C-390 is a military tactical transport aircraft that C-390 can carry 26 tons of payload and fly at speeds of 470 knots, performing a wide range of missions such as transporting and dropping cargo and troops, medical evacuation, search and rescue, firefighting, and humanitarian missions, operating on temporary or unpaved runways (i.e., including packed earth, soil, and gravel).
The refueling version of the aircraft has already proven its aerial refueling capacity, as well as an aircraft receiving fuel from another KC-390 using pods installed under the wings.
Austria is poised to procure between four to five of these aircraft to enhance its fleet, with the C-390 Millennium set to take over the role of replacing Austria’s three aging Lockheed Martin C-130K’s.
