A senior official for Brazilian aircraft manufacture Embraer has confirmed that the company is closely monitoring Wellington’s plans to replace two elderly Boeing 757 aircraft flying with the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF).
Bosco da Costa Jr, Head of Embraer Defense & Space told ADM in Brazil last week that he is carefully monitoring the process and would propose Embraer’s C-390 Millennium transport aircraft if an opportunity arose.
“We have a strong, amazing, relationship with the RNZAF and the commander the air force has visited us at several airshows in the past,” da Costa said. “We would like to maintain a very close relationship with them and we do believe that there is a possibility to have the C-390 flying there in a complementary way with the C-130 Hercules.”
In 2019, the RNZAF selected the Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 in lieu of the C-390 as a replacement for its geriatric C-130H Hercules fleet, but da Costa pointed out that, at that time, the C-390 had not achieved Final Operational Capability (FOC) and was not yet in service with the Brazilian Air Force.
“They said that this platform (C-390) was too risky for them in 2019,” da Costa said. “But the situation is completely different now.”
The C-390 is now in service with the Brazilian and Portuguese Air Forces and will enter service with the Hungarian Air Force later this year. The aircraft has also been selected by Austria, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and, most recently, the Republic of Korea.
Embraer also has active sales campaigns underway in India - where it is teamed with Mahindra Aerospace - and Saudi Arabia, but ADM understands a number of other countries, including Egypt, Singapore and Sweden, are seen as potential new customers in the short to medium term. The company is also hinting at further orders and - with the Farnborough Air Show just weeks away - it may not be too long before an announcement is forthcoming.
The Royal New Zealand Air Force purchased two ten-year old Boeing 757-2K2s previously operated by Dutch Airline Transavia in late 2002 and the pair were later fitted with a large freight door and strengthened cabin floor to allow them to be converted to the cargo role when required.
The two aircraft are currently operated as strategic airlift (passenger and freighter) and government/VIP roles by No.40 Squadron of the RNZAF, based at Whenuapai, near Auckland.
By 2024 successive New Zealand administrations had deferred the funding of upgrades for the aircraft and an Official Information Act (OIA) request to the current government from Radio New Zealand in May, revealed that almost NZ$70 million had been spent on maintenance in less than two years.
Their increasing unreliability was highlighted in June, when one aircraft transporting Prime Minister Christopher Luxon became unserviceable on a stop-over in Papua New Guinea en-route to Japan, stranding Luxon and his entourage.
As a result, New Zealand media quoted Luxon as saying: “We are in a place where we need to make sure we can replace (the) 757”.
Although Embraer’s turbofan-powered C-390 has been designed as a tactical transport, Bosco da Costa said that a palletised VIP kit has already been certified for the Brazilian Air Force and that the aircraft can perform all the missions currently flown by the 757.
“What I can say is, we’re watching this closely,” da Costa said. “We are seeking an opportunity to be part of the solution there.”
An in-depth look at the C-390's sales prospectives and its comparison with the C-130 Hercules will appear in the September/October issue of ADM.
Disclaimer: The writer travelled to Brazil as a guest of Embraer.