Embraer Begins Structural Assembly of First C-390 Millennium for Austria

The structural assembly of Austria’s first C-390 Millennium has officially begun at Embraer’s Gavião Peixoto production facility.

The milestone was marked by a ceremony on February 14, attended by a delegation of Austrian government representatives.

Austria acquired four C-390s aircraft to replace its aging Lockheed C-130 Hercules fleet. The €600 million agreement, part of a joint procurement with the Netherlands, was finalized at the Farnborough International Airshow on July 22, 2024. The deal includes nine aircraft, with five allocated to the Netherlands, each costing between €130 million and €150 million.

The C-390 was chosen for its performance, cost-effectiveness, and potential for shared training and maintenance with other European NATO nations. Austria’s C-130Ks, acquired secondhand from the U.K. in 2003, have been in service for nearly 56 years and are increasingly costly to maintain.

The C-390 Millennium has a maximum payload of 26 tons and a top speed of 470 knots. It is equipped with a rear ramp, robust landing gear, and engines designed to support operations on various terrains, including unpaved runways. The aircraft can perform multiple military and civilian missions, including cargo transport, personnel and vehicle deployment, peacekeeping operations, humanitarian support, medical evacuation, search and rescue, firefighting, air-to-air refueling, and disaster management.

The KC-390 variant, configured with air-to-air refueling equipment, can function as both a tanker and a receiver. It can also receive fuel from another KC-390 using wing-mounted refueling pods.

C-390 aircraft currently in operation have accumulated more than 16,300 flight hours, with a mission capability rate of 93% and mission completion rates above 99%.

Austria joins Brazil, Portugal, Hungary, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and the Republic of Korea in selecting the C-390 Millennium. In 2024, Sweden, Slovakia, and an undisclosed customer also opted for the aircraft.