In all, 210 passengers from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela were transported from Manaus to the Federal District and to Santa Catarina
Air Force Agency, by Lieutenant Letícia Faria and Major Oliveira Lima
It is on Brazilian soil that Venezuelan immigrants and refugees seek better living conditions. The gateway to Brazil is through the border with the state of Roraima. From there, they receive humanitarian aid through Operation Welcome, created in 2018. In this context, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) provides support, especially, to transport Venezuelans to other Brazilian capitals.
That’s why last Wednesday (26/10), the KC-30 – a new aircraft received by the FAB and considered the largest aircraft in the history of the Institution to compose the fleet – performed its first mission in support of Operation Acolhida. The aircraft, which can carry 238 passengers, took off from the Eduardo Gomes International Airport of Manaus and landed at the Brasília Air Base (BABR), where 35 passengers disembarked in the federal capital. The remaining 175 passengers landed in Florianópolis, capital of the state of Santa Catarina.
The mission was accomplished by the Second Squadron of the Second Transport Group (2º/2nd GT) – Corsair Squadron, based at Galeão Air Base (BAGL), in Rio de Janeiro (RJ). According to the Air Unit Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Aviator Marcos Fassarella Olivieri, the Squadron is responsible for planning and managing the air transport of refugees, from boarding the aircraft to their final destination, aiming to provide the best experience on board.
“The Corsair’s participation in Operation Welcome brings us a sense of duty fulfilled. It invigorates us to be able to support those who are in need and experiencing extreme difficulty in their homeland, having to abandon it. It fills us with pride to see a look of hope on the faces of these people,” says the Commander.
Mission Optimization
With the arrival of the KC-30 in FAB, the aircraft will allow a better optimization of the missions to be accomplished. That is, until now, immigrants were transported to other regions of Brazil by means of C-99 aircrafts, which have a maximum capacity for 50 passengers, depending on the route. “Performing the same mission with C-99 would require at least five flights. With this, we observe the capacity of the new FAB aircraft, the KC-30,” concludes the Officer.
Photos: Sergeant Müller Marin / CECOMSAER *** Translated by the DEFCONPress FYI Team ***