Brazilian Air Force A-29 Super Tucano aircraft conducted another interception of aircraft crossing from Venezuela into the state of Roraima in December 2025, as the FAB continues to intensify airspace control operations along Brazil’s northern border. The actions are part of a broader joint effort with the Federal Revenue Service…
Author: Leandro Maldonado
The Brazilian Air Force reached a new operational capability milestone in November 2025, conducting the first-ever live firings of the MBDA Meteor beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-to-air missile from an F-39E Gripen fighter. The launches took place during the BVR-X Technical Exercise at Natal Air Base in Rio Grande do Norte on…
The Argentine Air Force (FAA) received its first F-16 Block 10 fighters, sourced from surplus Danish Air Force stock, ending nearly a decade without an operational supersonic combat aircraft. Argentina had lost its air combat capability with the retirement of the Mirage III and A-4AR Fightingfalcon fleets, without replacement for…
Embraer and Saab, in cooperation with the Brazilian Air Force, successfully completed the full flight-test campaign certifying air-to-air refueling between the F-39E Gripen and the KC-390 Millennium, the companies announced on November 14, 2025. The testing was carried out at Embraer’s facility in Gavião Peixoto, São Paulo. The certification consolidates…
Sweden formally signed an agreement to acquire four Embraer C-390 Millennium transport aircraft, joining the growing group of European operators of the Brazilian platform. The contract includes purchase options as part of a broader trilateral framework involving Austria and the Netherlands. Sweden, which joined NATO in 2024, is modernizing its…
The Brazilian Air Force advanced its A-29 Super Tucano modernization program in 2025, conducting flight tests to validate the replacement of the Bendix/King KLN90B navigation system with the Garmin GPS 175 in aircraft from Boa Vista Air Base (RR) and Porto Velho Air Base (RO). The upgrade integrates the new…
Embraer delivered the eighth KC-390 Millennium to the Brazilian Air Force in October 2025 — the only example the FAB will receive during the year — following delays linked to payment process difficulties between the Brazilian government and the manufacturer. The KC-390 program has undergone significant revision since its inception:…
The Brazilian Air Force is evaluating the acquisition of 12 second-hand Gripen C/D fighters from Sweden as a transitional measure to bridge the gradual retirement of the veteran F-5M Tiger II — an aircraft in service since 1975 that, in its heavily modernized form, continues operating from strategic bases at…
Amid shifts in international fighter procurement, French aerospace giant Dassault Aviation is actively offering its Rafale multirole fighter to Portugal and Canada as an alternative to Lockheed Martin’s F-35. The proposal closely follows Portugal’s recent decision to step back from acquiring the American fighter, citing strategic shifts favoring European defense…
Argentina’s Fábrica Militar de Aviones (FMA) in Córdoba presented the first prototype of the IA-100B Malvina advanced trainer in March 2025, a domestically developed aircraft intended to serve the Argentine Air Force (FAA). The aircraft continues a long tradition of Argentine aeronautical programs that includes the IA-58 Pucará and the…