The Exercise started on Monday (07/03) and will last until this Friday (07/07)
On Monday (July 3rd), the 1st Troop Transport Group (1º GTT) – Zeus Squadron began, at the Anápolis Air Base (BAAN), the Third Phase of Operation Zeus. The exercise aims to perform an operational assessment, on the ground and in flight, of the operational suitability and efficiency of the KC-390 Millennium to be used to transport the Astros LMU MK-6 vehicle of the Brazilian Army (EB).
The operation will last until this Friday (07/07), and the results of the exercise will be of paramount importance for the consolidation of the KC-390 Millennium project. In addition, it is an important milestone of interoperability between the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) and the Brazilian Army, making efforts in a synergistic way to guarantee the sovereignty of the national territory in all its magnitude.
The Astros vehicle (Multiple Rocket Launching System) is a piece of equipment developed by Avibras and operated by the Brazilian Army to launch rockets and missiles. The platform, which can weigh up to 24 tons, is a self-propelled artillery vehicle that, besides the launchers, has a command and control system that allows coordination of shots, as well as communication and logistical support systems.
In the Test Operation, after preparing the aircraft, the loading of the vehicle, taxiing, and other verifications foreseen in the Test Plan were performed, to ensure all safe actions with the vehicle on board. With the success of the initial phases, a flight was performed with the vehicle on board and evolutions in designated airspace. The final landing, with maximum performance, consolidated the previous learning and crowned the success of the operation, which ended with the safe disembarkation of the vehicle from the aircraft.
Participating in this operation were military personnel from the 1st GTT, members of Embraer and Avibras, military personnel from the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology (DCTA), the Flight Research and Test Institute (IPEV), the Aeronautical Material Park of Galeão (PAMA-GL), the Directorate of Aeronautical and Military Material (DIRMAB) and the Brazilian Army.
For the Chief of Operations of the 1st GTT, Major Aviator Rafael Portella Santos, the Astros LMU MK-6 is one of the Brazilian Army’s main artillery systems and has been used to support military operations, both in training exercises and in real missions. “Its capacity to launch rockets and missiles of various types and ranges makes it an important piece in the Brazilian Army’s arsenal for reaching targets at long distances. Thus, the possibility of carrying this equipment on the wings of the FAB will further increase the performance horizon in the desired scenario,” he highlighted.
According to the Flight Test Pilot, Major Aviator Vinicius Marcel Holdorf, who conducted the tested aircraft, the combat car transport capacity of the KC-390 Millennium aircraft has been evaluated with increasing levels of difficulty since last year in Santa Maria (RS). “At the time, the Guarani and M-113 vehicles of the Brazilian Army were tested. The Astros launch vehicle was the biggest challenge of this phase and adds power to the KC-390’s capabilities, reiterating the operational superiority of Embraer’s project,” he concluded.
Photos: Private Gonçalves / BAAN