The inaugural class took place this Monday (06/06), in Campinas (SP)
Air Force Agency, by Lieutenant Flávia Rocha
The opening ceremony for the KC-30 operational training course took place on Monday (06/06) at the Universidade da Azul (UniAzul), in Campinas (SP). The event was attended by the Commander of the Brazilian Air Force, Air Lieutenant Brigadier Carlos de Almeida Baptista Junior; the General Support Commander of the Air Force, Air Lieutenant Brigadier Pedro Luís Farcic, and other civilian and military authorities.
In April of this year, the Air Force signed a contract for the acquisition of two A330-200 aircraft, with the objective of supplying the FAB’s operational needs in strategic actions, such as in-flight refueling, logistical air transport, and humanitarian aid.
Before the ceremony, the FAB Commander visited the University of Azul facilities and the A33O hangar. And, during the event, he stressed that the characteristics of the KC-30 will provide a significant increase in the operationality of FAB. “The responsibility to arrive at this day is 100% in the belief of the capacity that these airplanes will bring to our Air Force: personnel transport, strategic transport, in-flight refueling and aeromedical evacuation,” stressed Lieutenant-Brigadier Baptista Junior.
At the inaugural class, the President of Azul Linhas Aéreas, John Rodgerson, gave a speech to the military personnel who will operate the Air Force platform, which is one of the most renowned in the world. “Be united as a team. You will remember this day 30 or 40 years from now when you see these aircraft crossing the skies, fueling other aircraft. You will be able to say: ‘I helped implement that. You have to be very proud. Brazil’s potential is enormous, and you are helping to realize Brazil’s potential,” he said.
2º/2º GT
The KC-30 aircraft will be operated by military personnel from the Second Squadron of the Second Transport Group (2º/2º GT) – Corsair Squadron, which is based at Galeão Air Base, in Rio de Janeiro.
According to the Commander of the 2nd/2nd GT, Major Aviator Marcos Fassarella Olivieri, the beginning of the training represents a milestone in the operational reactivation of the Corsair Squadron. “The KC-30 aircraft will be the largest vector ever operated by FAB and will bring back the strategic transport capacity to the country, being able to carry 250 passengers and fly up to 8,000 nautical miles. In this context, eight pilots, eight mechanics and 16 flight attendants have the important mission of bringing to FAB the knowledge and doctrine acquired at the University of Azul,” he said.
KC-30
In its entire history, FAB has only had one aircraft capable of performing this variety of strategic missions: the Boeing KC-137, which last flew in 2013. Today, FAB’s largest aircraft are the KC-390 Millennium, which plays an important role in airlift missions for cargo and personnel, paratrooper launch, aerial assault, among others, in a tactical setting. With this new acquisition, FAB unites the possibilities of the KC-390 with the strategic employment characteristics of the KC-30, resulting in a significant increase in its operationality.
A multimission strategic transport and REVO vector like the KC-30 is characterized by its ability to carry passengers in a conventional commercial cabin and a large volume of cargo in the holds on long-haul flights. The same cabin can be quickly reconfigured to fulfill aeromedical evacuation missions, i.e., molded according to operational needs, with great flexibility.
Thus, with the combination of the potentialities of the two aircraft, the Brazilian Air Force achieves an extraordinary operational leap in Transport Aviation and guarantees, even more effectively, the maintenance of airspace sovereignty and the integration of the national territory, aiming at the defense of the Homeland.
*** Translated DEFCONPress Team *** Fotos: Sargento Viegas/ CECOMSAER – Vídeo: Sargento Ronan / CECOMSAER