GAVIAO PEIXOTO, Brazil – Embraer is preparing for a first flight of the KC-390military transport before year’s end, following the rollout of the first prototype.
The aircraft, registered PT-ZNR, was presented to factory workers and Brazilian and foreign air force officials during a ceremony at Embraer’s Gaviao Peixoto site near Sao Paulo on Oct. 21.
Painted in the colors of the Brazilian air force, the aircraft is virtually ready to fly, Embraer and Brazilian air force officials say. It will now undergo a series of avionics tests to ensure "that the integrated systems are talking to each other," says Paulo Gastao Silva, Embraer’s KC-390 program manager.
Other tests will include ground vibration trials and a series of certification trials, which will give the aircraft clearance to make the first flight.
A second prototype is in the final stages of structural assembly and will fly "shortly after the first," Silva says.
Two aircraft will be involved in the two-year flight test and certification program, which will cover a civilian FAR 25 certification and then appropriate military certification through the Brazilian military airworthiness agency, IFI. Their work will focus on the operational deltas with mission equipment.
On completion of testing, the two prototype aircraft will be converted into standard KC-390s and added to the Brazilian air force fleet, resulting in the air arm operating an extra two aircraft in addition to the 28 currently on order, Silva said.