Free Republic

Boeing’s statement confirmed a Reuters story earlier on Saturday and followed a story on Friday in which Reuters reported that the deal was close to collapse as the two parties neared a crucial midnight deadline. Boeing said in the statement that Embraer had failed to meet certain conditions for the deal to go through, although it did not specify which ones. The April 24 deadline for closing had been baked into the deal since early last year, but antitrust hiccups had forced the two companies to try to work out a new deadline. In July 2018, Boeing agreed to buy...

Swedish airplane manufacturer Saab could cancel its contract to supply Gripen jet fighters to the Brazilian Air Force if it believes that an eventual tie-up between American company Boeing and Brazilian company Embraer could put technological secrets of its aircraft at risk. Folha has learned that this is the message that Saab is going to deliver on Tuesday (the 23rd) in a meeting scheduled with Defense Minister Raul Jungmann. The Swedish delegation will be headed up by the company's President, Hakan Buskhe. In 2013 the Swedish aircraft won a long running international competition against the French Dassault Rafale and the...

The Embraer Super Tucano is the sole compliant bidder for a Philippines Air Force (PAF) requirement for a new close air support (CAS) aircraft. The PAF has prioritized CAS and air to ground munitions procurement as a result of the takeover by Muslim extremist insurgents of the city of Marawi on the southern island of Mindanao. An Embraer spokesperson said the company is committed to fulfilling the requirement. The PAF is seeking six aircraft for CAS to complement, and eventually replace its aging fleet of OV-10 Bronco twin turboprops. The Broncos have recently flown missions over Marawi, dropping 500-pound Mk...

Embraer rolled out the first prototype of the KC-390 military transport from the production hangar at the industrial plant of Gavião Peixoto, Brazil. The first flight, planned to take place by the end of 2014. Today, 21 October, Embraer rolled out the first prototype of the KC-390 military transport from the production hangar at the industrial plant of Gavião Peixoto, Brazil. The event was attended by the Brazilian Minister of Defense, Celso Amorim, the Commander of the Brazilian Air Force, Lieutenant-Brigadier General Juniti Saito, and delegations and representatives from more than 30 countries. This milestone rollout will allow the Company...

Last week, when I was being shown around Embraer's new U.S.-assembled A-29 Super Tucano with a group of journalists, the first thing that caught my eye was a big covered something sticking out of each wing. In an age of remote control drones and smart bombs, that couldn't possibly be a machine gun, could it? It sure enough was said our Embraer guide. The A29, in a throwback to the days of mano a mano air combat, has a single .50 caliber gun in each wing, although not the same Browning model used in just about every U.S.-made aircraft that...

The first A29 Super Tucano manufactured in the United States made its debut today in a ceremony at the Embraer facility at Jacksonville International Airport. The light air support defense plane, contracted by the U.S. Air Force from Sierra Nevada Corp. and built by Brazilian-based Embraer, has passed its military certifications and was officially approved for use by the Air Force. The Afghan National Army for light air support will eventually use the plane. "The capability speaks for itself," said Taco Gilbert, vice president of the Sierra Nevada Corp. "It's gotten its air worthiness approval, which is a stamp of...

A tale of two aerospace companies One of Israel's earliest startups, Israel Aerospace Industries, failed to fulfill its potential or rival its peers. Long before Israel became world-renowned as the “Startup Nation,” the country was already home to a highly successful startup: Israel Aircraft Industries (now called Israel Aerospace Industries), which shot up like a meteor in a few years, from a small aircraft overhaul and maintenance shop to a major player in the aerospace industry. Initially encouraged by David Ben-Gurion and Shimon Peres, staffed by talented Israeli aeronautical engineers, and led by an ambitious and active management, IAI accomplished...

Embraer Officially Opens A-29 Assembly Facility in Florida Florida Gov. Rick Scott and other political leaders joined Embraer president and CEO Frederico Curado on March 26 to cut the ribbon on a 40,000-sq-ft hangar at Jacksonville International Airport that Embraer will use to assemble the A-29 Super Tucano for the U.S. Air Force Light Air Support (LAS) program. The Air Force awarded Embraer and its teammate Sierra Nevada, the U.S. proponent for the LAS bid, a $427 million contract on February 27 to supply 20 Super Tucanos for light air support, reconnaissance support and training of the Afghan military. The...

Embraer bests Beechcraft for Afghan plane order (Reuters) - Brazil's Embraer bested U.S.-based Beechcraft in a high-stakes U.S. Air Force recompetition for 20 light air support planes to be provided to the Afghan military for training and counterinsurgency. Embraer and its U.S.-based partner, Sierra Nevada, were awarded a $427.5 million deal, the Pentagon announced after the close of business on Wednesday. The pair had won an initial $355 million contract in December 2011, but it was scrapped after a legal challenge from the losing bidder, then known as Hawker Beechcraft. Brazilian leaders had voiced displeasure with the sudden cancellation, saying...

Embraer launched a public relations offensive at AirVenture Oshkosh, WI. Super Tucano at AirVenture

Boeing to arm Embraer's Super Tucano fighter (Reuters) - Brazil's Embraer is announcing plans on Tuesday for Boeing Co to supply a new weapons system for its light attack fighter, strengthening its offer in a fiercely contested bid for a U.S. Air Force contract in Afghanistan. The new weapons system will offer longer-range "smart" bombs guided by laser and GPS, Embraer said. The company will provide details of the new system, first reported in the Estado de S. Paulo newspaper, at the Farnborough Airshow later in the day. With the Boeing weapons system on its Super Tucano fighter, Embraer aims...

A Whole New Twist on “Buy America” by Robbin Laird This weekend in a fine piece in The New York Times, C.J. Chivers focused on the airpower dimension in Afghan operations. The title was tellingly: “Afghan Conflict Losing Air Power as U.S. pulls out.” http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/07/world/asia/in-dwindling-afghan-war-air-power-has-become-a-way-of-life.html?_r=2&hp In its way, this strike was a model of what air power can do. It was timely, precise and effective, and it neatly integrated communications, logistics, tactics and firepower, freeing American troops from danger in a remote canyon halfway around the world. It was also so complex — with the assistance of an aerial tanker...

Embraer sells Super Tucanos to three African countries Embraer has sold its Super Tucano light attack/trainer aircraft to Burkina Faso, Angola and Mauritania in deals worth a combined US$180 million, the Brazilian manufacturer announced yesterday. The Burkina Faso Air Force has already received three Super Tucanos, which were spotted at Guararapes International Airport in Recife, Brazil, on September 7 last year during their delivery flight. They are currently being used for border patrol missions. The Super Tucanos are a major boost to Burkina Faso’s small air arm, whose only other combat aircraft are two Mi-35s acquired from Russia in 2005....

An Open Letter to General Schwartz on the Light Air Support Aircraft by Ed Timperlake Please do not validate that the AT-6 was compliant when submitted for LAS Solicitation FA8615-10-R-6088” by allowing your investigators to focus exclusively on the end-game selection paperwork. “There will be hell to pay” USAF Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz was recently quoted about possible results depending on what the “investigation” of the “smoking hole” debacle of trying to deliver a combat aircraft to the Afghan war effort. This is more tough talk from a General who previously told industry: “Don’t blow smoke up my...

Hawker Beechcraft's AT-6 Guns For Embraer's Super Tucano: Rival Planes Compared It's Texan versus Tucano, take two, and the embarrassed Air Force has got to get it right this time. With all the claims, counter-claims, and rumors swirling about the controversial contract to buy the Embraer Super Tucano, which the Air Force cancelled unexpectedly on Tuesday and will likely re-compete, AOL Defense went both to the rival companies and independent sources to distill this definitive guide to the competition, from the two planes' performance to the manufacturers' twenty-year history of feuding. The bottom line? Both leading competitors are offering small,...

Super Tucano Vs AT-6: The “Smoking Hole” by Ed Timperlake “While we pursue perfection, we sometimes fall short, and when we do we will take corrective action,” said Air Force Secretary Michael Donley, in a statement Tuesday (Feb 28, 2012). The USAF just withdrew their selection of the SuperTucano for the Afghan Army Air Force LAS. Numerous worldwide news stories are reporting this action. The Air Force plans to set aside a disputed $354 million contract for a light air support plane and initiate an investigation into the award. A senior USAF acquisition official, who is reportedly leaving soon in...

US Air Force cancels deal for Brazilian-made aircraft AFP - The US Air Force has canceled a $355 million contract for a light attack aircraft made by Brazil's Embraer, saying it would open an investigation after protests from a rival US aerospace firm, officials said Tuesday. The contract for 20 Embraer AT-29 Super Tucano aircraft was awarded in December as part of plans to arm the Afghan military amid a NATO troop drawdown. But the US Air Force said it was not "satisfied" with the paperwork supporting the decision to hand the project to US-based Sierra Nevada Corporation, in partnership...

Mayor Alvin Brown: We need military aircraft built here Jacksonville has a long history of supporting the military and its national security role. Jacksonville is a city of nearly a million people where one of every four residents is either on active duty, is serving in the reserves, or is a proud veteran. We are honored to host a military/veteran population of nearly 250,000 people in the Jacksonville community. From the start, my administration has made military issues a top priority. When the United States Air Force announced its selection of the A-29 Super Tucano for its Light Air Support...

Peru may buy 10 Embraer Super Tucanos -Brazil * Deal with Embraer could be worth $150 mln * Peru also interested in Embraer's KC-390 planes * Brazil, Peru want to boost border security BRASILIA, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Peru is considering buying ten Super Tucano light attack aircraft from Brazil's Embraer as it works with Brazil to bolster surveillance along their jungle border, Brazilian Defense Minister Celso Amorim said on Tuesday. Amorim said the Peruvian military is also interested in Embraer's KC-390 military transport plane and the armoured land vehicle Guarani, a Brazilian army project that is expected to start...

Misinformation and Legal Wrangling Delaying Mission-Critical A-29 Super Tucano for American Warfighters in Afghanistan SPARKS, Nev., Feb. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC), the winner of the U.S. Air Force Light Air Support (LAS) competition, today issued a point-by-point rebuttal of misinformation being spread by the disqualified contender for the contract. The LAS contract provides aircraft, training and support for the U.S. government's partner building efforts in Afghanistan and other nations. The aircraft is urgently needed to support aerial reconnaissance and light air operations in Afghanistan, as well as to develop the organic capability needed to complete the...