Brazil receives first E-99 AEW&C aircraft upgraded to FOC standard

Brazil has now received back into service all five E-99A aircraft upgraded to the E-99M standard, including the first in a full operating configuration. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)

The Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira: FAB) has received back into service its first Embraer E-99A (EMB-145SA) airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) platform to be upgraded to the full operating capability (FOC) standard.

Embraer announced the milestone on 23 November, saying that this first FOC aircraft is also the last of the FAB's fleet of five aircraft to be upgraded to the E-99M (modernised) standard. The four airframes previously delivered back to the FAB will now be retrofitted to the FOC standard as well.

“The aircraft has been updated to perform AEW&C functions, as well as participate in intelligence, surveillance, and airborne reconnaissance missions,” Embraer said.

“The delivery of the fifth E-99 is an important milestone for the E-99M project. This is the first aircraft delivered in FOC configuration, with systems fully certified for use by the Brazilian Air Force,” Bosco da Costa Junior, president and CEO of Embraer Defense and Security, was quoted as saying. “The four aircraft previously delivered will be upgraded so that they can fully perform all the missions for which they were designed.”

Based on the ERJ-145 regional jet, the E-99 was developed for Brazil's System for Vigilance of the Amazon architecture. In its baseline form, it features a mission system comprising an improved variant of the Saab Erieye surveillance radar, and accommodates four operator consoles.