A year after the Embraer KC-390 tanker/ transport aircraft first entered service with the Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira, FAB), the aircraft carried out its first airborne assault mission, dropping soldiers from the Brazilian Army Parachute Infantry Brigade (Brigada de Infantaria Paraquedista). The First Troop Transport Group (1st GTT) – Zeus Squadron, based in Anápolis, Goiás on December 9 carried out the first paratrooper launch from the KC-390 Millennium aircraft.
The training is being carried out for the Culminating Operational Exercise, which will be carried out in the state of Louisiana, in the United States, when Brazilian and American paratroopers are scheduled to launch using the C-17, C-130J and KC-390 Millennium aircraft. The training started in Anápolis with the contractual module Operational Familiarization (OPFM), given by EMBRAER, for the training of the first crew instructors of the aircraft KC-390 Millennium in launching parachutists by the semi-automatic or hooked method.
The Embraer C-390 is a medium-size, twin-engine, jet-powered military transport aircraft produced by the Brazilian manufacturer Embraer. Tthe aircraft can be configured to perform various conventional operations such as troop, VIP and cargo transportation, and more specialised logistical operations such as aerial refuelling as a tanker. The first production aircraft was delivered to the Brazilian Air Force on 4 September 2019. On 18 November 2019, Embraer announced the new name of the aircraft for the global market, C-390 Millennium.
The aircraft can carry 26 t (57,000 lb): two fully tracked M113 armored personnel carriers, one Boxer or Brazilian VBTP-MR Guarani wheeled armored vehicle, a Sikorsky H-60 helicopter, 74 litters with life-support equipment, up to 80 soldiers or 66 paratroopers with full gear, and loads of up to 42,000 lb (19 t) can be air dropped. The C-390 can refuel in flight other aircraft through two wing-mounted probe and drogue pods from Cobham plc delivering up to 1,500 L (400 US gal) per minute from a 35 t (77,000 lb) total fuel capacity.
