Portugal, Brazil sign MoU to produce military aircraft in Europe

Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva embraces Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa (right) after addressing journalists at the end of the Portugal-Brazil summit at the Belem Cultural Center in Lisbon, April 22, 2023.(PHOTO / AP)

LISBON – Portuguese defense aerospace companies and Brazilian aviation company Embraer signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Monday to produce military aircraft in Europe.

The Portuguese companies that signed the memorandum with Embraer are the Center for Engineering and Product Development, Empordef Information Technologies, GMV, and OGMA

The MoU was signed in the presence of Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva who is on his 4-day official visit to Portugal.

"Today, with the signing of this memorandum of understanding, we take another important step in the continuous development of technologies related to the A-29 Super Tucano," said Joao Bosco Costa Junior, president and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security.

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He said that technologies related to the A-29 Super Tucano will be built, and the new version of the aircraft will feature equipment to meet North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)'s operational requirements.

The Portuguese companies that signed the memorandum with Embraer are the Center for Engineering and Product Development, Empordef Information Technologies, GMV, and OGMA (General Workshops of Aeronautical Material).

Embraer is one of the most important aircraft companies in the world. In addition to the A-29 Super Tucano and the KC-390, it provides a full line of integrated solutions and applications such as Command and Control Center, radars, ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance) and space.