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Brazil's Embraer eyes NATO buyers for Super Tucano Mon, Jan 16 2012 By Brad Haynes and Carolina Marcondes SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil's Embraer expects to sell its Super Tucano light attack aircraft to more NATO nations after clinching an order from the United States that lifted the company into the upper echelons of global defense contractors, a top executive told Reuters. "When you're selling to the most demanding client on the planet ... that's a showcase," Luiz Carlos Aguiar, the head of Embraer's Defense and Security unit, said in an interview. "It naturally opens the door to the NATO...

NATO Training Mission Afghanistan Story by Petty Officer 1st Class Chris FaheyS New airframe adds strike capability to Afghan air force AFGHANISTAN - In Afghanistan’s continued effort to independently battle counterinsurgency, a new tool will be added to their arsenal designed to allow versatility, reconnaissance and precision weapons placement to the growing Afghan air force. Announced Dec. 30, the U.S. Air Force has approved a contract worth more than $350 million that will provide the Afghan air force with at least 20 A-29 Super Tucano light air support aircraft, ground training devices and all associated maintenance and support equipment originally...

The Super Tucano has won the LAS competition: Lingering Questions 01/04/2012 By Ed Timperlake There is tremendous news for the American/NATO war effort in Afghanistan. With the selection of the Super Tucano, the Afghan Army Air Force can now begin to develop a combat capable air fleet for the Afghan Air Force. Doing so is part of the process of reducing US and allied presence and having a key element for cooperation after the substantial ground forces of the US and its allies leave. This is a core task, not a peripheral one. This is not a procurement game; this...

Without telling anyone but Embraer, the Brazilian company he has decided to give the contract to, Barack “transparency” Obama has bypassed an American company and shutdown any further bidding on a project to build Light Air Support (LAS) planes for the Air Force. Given the Obama Administration’s penchant for double talk and outright lying it’s no wonder Hawker Beechcraft a Kansas air ship building company was snubbed. In Obama’s world building American really doesn’t count for much except as a phrase to use when talking to union members whose votes and money he needs. Since Hawker is a heavily unionized...

A-29 Super Tucano Wins Air Force Bid for Light Air Support Mission SPARKS, Nev., Dec. 30, 2011 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- SIERRA NEVADA CORPORATION and EMBRAER DEFENSE & SECURITY to supply aircraft, training and support to the Light Air Support program. A-29 Super Tucano to be built in Jacksonville, FL; over 70 U.S. companies to supply parts and services Eren Ozmen, President, Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC), and Luiz Carlos Aguiar, CEO, Embraer Defense and Security (Embraer), today announced that the U.S. Air Force has selected SNC, partnered with Embraer, to supply Light Air Support (LAS) aircraft to be used as...

End-Game for USAF Competition? By Ed Timperlake November 20, 2011 11/20/2011 The headline in the Wichita Eagle says it all—“Hawker Beechcraft loses out on big Air Force contract” Reporter Dan Voorhis writing for The Wichita Eagle, (November 18 2011) points out that; “Hawker Beechcraft Corp. says the Air Force has informed the company that it lost out on a military contract worth nearly $1billion. “The company had hoped to win the Light Air Support contract with its AT-6, an armed version of its T-6 trainer. But on Friday, the company said it received a letter from the Air Force saying...

Small Weapons for Light Fighters In the recent weapon test campaign AT-6 completed firing of 2.75” unguided rockets, conducted captive carry test with guided 2.75" rockets and dropped general purpose bombs, four GBU-12, and four GBU-58 laser guided bombs (LGB - above), all LGBs scored direct hits. Additional tests are planned with other weapon types including Raytheon Griffin 35-lb. GPS/laser-guided bomb and Hellfire guided missile from Lockheed martin.. Under the U.S. Air National Guard evaluation of a future Light Attack and Armed Reconnaissance (LAAR) to be operated by the U.S. and Afghan air forces, the Air Force is seeking a...

Why It's No Longer Raining Cocaine in the Dominican Republic By Ezra Fieser / Santo Domingo Drug cartels often drop their product from small planes for it to be picked up by traffickers on land. But sometimes those air deliveries miss their mark — and until recently, errant bundles of cocaine used to fall from the sky into the Dominican Republic's countryside so frequently that one rural cab driver tells TIME they were like "gifts from God," because residents who found them could sell them back to the narcos for a handsome price. "It paid better than any other job,"...

Sierra Nevada Corporation and Embraer Launch BuiltForTheMission.com (Source: Sierra Nevada Corporation; issued May 19, 2011) SPARKS, Nev. --- As part of their bid to supply aircraft, training and support for the United States Air Force's Light Air Support (LAS) mission, Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) and Embraer have launched a new – to highlight the capabilities of the A-29 Super Tucano and how its selection benefits the warfighter and the U.S. economy. The A-29 Super Tucano will be built in Jacksonville, FL by American employees and with parts from American companies. Aircraft training will be provided in Clovis, NM. More than...

U.S. Wants COIN Aircraft For Foreign Training By Graham Warwick, Bill Sweetman Washington, Washington For a time it looked as if the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan might spark demand for dedicated counterinsurgency (COIN) aircraft, the way Vietnam gave new life to the A-1 Skyraider and spurred development of the OV-10 Bronco. A little more than two years ago, the U.S. Air Force envisioned operating a fleet of 100 light-attack/armed reconnaissance aircraft as part of a specialized irregular-warfare wing, and the Navy was evaluating an organic light-attack platform for its special operations forces. Now it looks unlikely that U.S. forces...

EMBRAER UNVEILS THE NEW EMB 145 AEW&C PLATFORM DEVELOPED FOR THE INDIAN GOVERNMENT It is the first of three aircraft that will incorporate the DRDO-developed surveillance equipment São José dos Campos, February 21, 2011 – Embraer presented the first of three EMB 145 Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) platforms, today, to representatives of the Indian government at a ceremony held at its headquarters in São José dos Campos, Brazil. Based on the proven Embraer ERJ 145 regional jet, the aircraft features an in-flight refueling system, SATCOM capability, a significant increase in electrical and cooling capacities, and a comprehensive set...

Embraer May Develop Trainer Aircraft With India By SANTANU CHOUDHURY BANGALORE -- Brazil's Embraer S.A. may develop a basic turboprop trainer aircraft jointly with India to meet potential demand from the air forces in both nations, a senior company executive said Friday. Embraer expects also to shortly win a contract from India to supply nine multi-mission aircraft, Orlando J F Neto, executive vice president for defense market, said. Embraer is among several defense companies worldwide who are participating at the ongoing Aero India show on expectations that the south Asian country will buy more weapons, aircraft and other defense equipment...

Embraer shows off light attack aircraft that could be built in Jacksonville Brazilian company hopes to land 5-year contract from U.S. government. By Matt Soergel The Super Tucano is a single-engine, turboprop plane that can stay over a battlefield for several hours, unleash a load of bombs and then, if necessary, land on a rugged dirt runway. The company that wants to build it in Jacksonville brought one to the international airport Sunday to show off to local media and dignitaries. Embraer Aircraft Holding expects to hear in June if it has won a five-year contract from the U.S. Department...

Embraer Suggests Super Tucano-F/A-18 Linkage Dec 7, 2010 By Robert Wall LONDON — In discussing Brazil’s F-X2 fighter competition, Embraer CEO Frederico Curado suggested a U.S. purchase of Super Tucanos could benefit Boeing’s effort to sell the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. Curado’s comments are far short of a quid-pro-quo proposal, but the Embraer CEO apparently believed a deal to buy U.S.-assembled Super Tucanos would be an easier way to satisfy offset requirements than using Boeing’s large commercial aircraft business. The comments were made last year during discussions with the U.S. ambassador to Brazil and reported in a “confidential” internal State Department...

A brother of three men indicted last month on federal sex trafficking charges provided one of them access to restricted areas at the Nashville International Airport including in the cockpit of a plane. The information came out during a hearing regarding the federal detention of Abdifatah Sharif Omar and Mohamed Sharif Omar Thursday in the U.S. District Court in Nashville. The two, along with brother Liban Sharif Omar, are three of the 29 individuals — mostly from Minneapolis and Nashville — indicted in November on federal charges of sex trafficking involving juvenile girls.

Boeing proposes Embraer link in bid for Brazil contract (AFP) – 1 hour ago SAO PAULO — Boeing is offering to partner with Brazil's Embraer on a new fighter jet, in an effort to strengthen its bid for a multi-billion-dollar Brazilian defense contract, the US manufacturer said in a report Monday. Joseph McAndrew, Boeing's vice president for Europe, Israel and America, told business publication Valor that the firm proposed 10 partnership projects with Brazil's aviation leader, including building a new plant in the country to build parts for Boeing's F/A-18 Super Hornet. The jet is locked in a heated competition...

Indonesia orders Super Tucanos for light attack role By Greg Waldron Indonesia plans to buy eight Embraer EMB-314 Super Tucano light attack turboprops, and could eventually double its order - the first for the Brazilian type in the Asia-Pacific region. "Air force headquarters has decided to replace our Rockwell OV-10 Broncos with as many as 16 Super Tucanos," says Indonesian air force operational commander Yushan Sayuti, according to a report by the country's official Antara news agency. The first Super Tucanos will arrive in 2012 under the initial order, which also includes ground-support stations and a logistics package. Several other...

U.S. and international air forces are becoming interested and open to utilizing off-the-shelf equipment in low-intensity, counter-insurgency and counter-drug operations in remote areas. The U.S. Navy is already evaluating an armed version of Embraer’s EMB-314 Super Tucano under a classified evaluation program known as ‘Imminent Fury’. The Navy is currently evaluating a single aircraft and is seeking a budget of $44 million to embark on a larger program. The Special Operations Command, Air Force and US Marine Corps are also interested in employing off the shelf assets for low-intensity Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance and rapid target engagement. Armed Super Tucanos...

Closer political ties raise prospects for renewed alliance between Dassault and Embraer By Stephen Trimble Growing political ties between Brazil and France may possibly lead to the rebirth of an even more powerful Dassault/Embraer alliance stretching beyond even their common interests in business jets and combat aircraft. A joint communiqué issued by presidents Nicolas Sarkozy of France and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil commit their governments to pursing closer links in the aerospace industry. Brazil initially appeared to agree to buy 36 Dassault Rafale F3s for the FX-2 contract, but the country's defence minister later clarified that negotiations...

Among allies, USAF takes irregular warfare path alone By Stephen Trimble While most of its allies seek to refocus on conventional warfare, the US Air Force may soon spend hundreds of millions of dollars to acquire dozens of light fighters and airlifters uniquely dedicated to counter-insurgency roles. Having spent much of the past decade supporting US-led military campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq, the major air powers of Europe are looking to recalibrate their fiscal resources and activities more towards conventional operations, say several analysts. "We have invested far too much in [irregular warfare, or IW]. We now have to claw...