After a streak of international sales of its C-390 military cargo aircraft, Embraer turns its attention to the United States defense market.
What a difference a few years make. Back in 2020, amidst the chaos of the pandemic, Boeing pulled back from its deal for a couple of joint ventures with Embraer in Brazil. The main venture involved Embraer’s commercial aircraft division as a whole.
The second joint venture had to do with the Embraer C-390 cargo aircraft. Embraer hoped to use Boeing’s sales “clout” as an aircraft manufacturer (and defense contractor) to promote sales of its aircraft worldwide.
Tough Times, Good Times
Officially, Boeing claimed that Embraer didn’t satisfy the terms of their joint ventures. It is true that Embraer’s value dropped, unbalancing the relationship between the two companies. But most analysts agree that the pandemic, the continuing 737 MAX groundings and Boeing’s overall financial position were greater factors in its decision.
Sales of the Brazilian manufacturer’s aircraft had slowed down dramatically before these events in anticipation of the joint venture. The Brazilian manufacturer’s business jets sold reasonably well in 2020 and 2021, helping the company stay afloat.
More recently, Embraerhas secured more sales for its aircraft, including the military C-390 and its tanker version, the KC-390. Aside from Brazil itself, Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the Netherlands, Portugal and South Korea have ordered or are negotiating for C-390s.
Sweden has also eyed C-390 orders, possibly in an exchange contract involving SAAB’s JAS-39 Gripen-E, since Brazil has ordered this fighter jet. In general, Embraer hopes to sell its military cargo aircraft to current operators of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, which some of its recent buyers use.
Selling the Embraer C-390 in the U.S. – Possible?
And what of the United States? On paper, the purchase of a foreign aircraft like the C-390 may seem unlikely – but it wouldn’t be unprecedented. In 2006, Italy’s Alenia (now Leonardo) formed a joint venture with L-3 Communications and Boeing to promote sales of its C-27J Spartan cargo aircraft to the U.S. military.
So, the latest news from Embraer is that the manufacturer hired Oliver Wyman, a consultancy firm, to help secure sales of the C-390 in the United States. In an interview, Embraer Defense CEO Bosco da Costa Jr. pointed out that the US military market is too lucrative for any manufacturer to ignore.
The Brazilian manufacturer has already sold aircraft to the U.S. military, the A-29B Super Tucano, as a counter-insurgency aircraft in some theaters. And when it comes to the C-390, Embraer counted on Boeing to identify any opportunities to secure U.S. sales when the two joint ventures were still on the cards.
Hence, “What might have been” in the title. For Boeing, the C-390 was a chance to score points (and sales) against Lockheed and its successful C-130. However, the prospect of a new pairing of Boeing and Embraer today looks decidedly slim. That’s unless Boeing undergoes a spectacular transformation under its new management.
Source
The post What Might Have Been – Embraer Targets C-390 Sales In The US appeared first on Mentour Pilot.