Brazilian aerospace company Embraer successfully completed the air refueling qualification between two KC390​ #Millennium​ aircraft in partnership with Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira​, FAB). 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, between 120 to 300 kn (220 to 560 km/h) and from 2,000 to 32,000 ft (610 to 9,750 m).
The Embraer C-390 Millennium is a medium-size, twin-engine, jet-powered military transport aircraft produced by the Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer. With a load capacity of 26 tonnes (29 tons), the 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. It is the heaviest aircraft the company has made to date.
Embraer built the C-390 around the 18.5 m (61 ft) long, 3.45 m (11.3 ft) wide and 2.95 m (9 ft 8 in) high hold with a rear ramp. Its twin IAE V2500-E5 turbofans are mounted forward on the high wing with anhedral angle, slats and up to 40° flaps High-lift devices. The landing gear has low-pressure tires, two 5.9 bar (85 psi) on the nose and four 7.2 bar (105 psi) on either side bogies for soft, unpaved ground or damaged runways. Fly-by-wire flight controls with active sidesticks allows load factors up to 3g.
In 2014 the Government of Brazil ordered 28 C-390s with the intention of progressively replacing the Brazilian Air Force’s cargo aircraft fleet, including its C-130s. The first production aircraft was delivered to the Brazilian Air Force on 4 September 2019. On 18 November 2019 during the Dubai Airshow, Embraer and Boeing announced the new name of the aircraft for the global market, C-390 Millennium. The first C-390 operated from Anapolis Air Base by the First Troop Transport Group.
