Colombia buys 2 KC-390s from Embraer in $336 million deal

WASHINGTON — Colombia has finalized a deal to buy two KC-390 Millennium airlifters from Brazilian planemaker Embraer, the Colombian Aerospace Force announced today.

The first aircraft is expected to arrive in 2029, followed by the second in 2030, according to a press release from the Colombian Aerospace Force, or FAC (Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana). The deal is estimated to cost roughly $366 million, with “fixed prices that protect the national budget” from inflationary pressures. 

The FAC said in the release that the aircraft was selected as the result of “rigorous analysis” stemming from an overarching strategy to modernize Bogotá’s air and space forces. The FAC further touted the Millennium’s ability to “integrate” with forthcoming JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets — which Embraer is co-producing with Swedish manufacturer Saab via a final assembly line in Brazil — that Colombia ordered last year. 

“We are honored by the FAC’s decision to select the KC-390 Millennium,” Bosco da Costa Junior, the CEO of Embraer’s defense division, said in a company press release. “The KC-390 will significantly expand and strengthen Colombia’s airlift and aerial refueling capabilities, setting a new standard for operational excellence.”

Colombia currently operates an aging airlift fleet consisting of legacy models of the Lockheed Martin C-130, one of which crashed in March, killing 69 people. Bogotá also flies Embraer’s A-29 Super Tucano, and is phasing out its fleet of Israel Aerospace Industries Kfir fighters to replace them with the Gripen. 

As a multirole airlifter, the KC-390 can perform missions ranging from troop and cargo transport to air refueling through a hose-and-drogue system. The KC-390 is a fierce competitor against the C-130 Super Hercules, at times winning contests to replace legacy versions of the Lockheed airlifter. 

The selection by the FAC is at least the third contract win for the Millennium this year, following orders by the United Arab Emirates in May and by Greece in June. 

Embraer executives have previously said they expect the Millennium’s total addressable market to be as high as 450 aircraft over the next two decades. Through a new partnership with American defense giant Northrop Grumman, the company is studying plans to outfit the KC-390 with a dedicated refueling boom that would enable the Millennium to gas up a wider range of aircraft.