On October 7, Hamas, a Palestinian terrorist group, launched an attack on Israel that included thousands of rockets that destroyed numerous structures. Countless lives were taken, and thousands have been displaced. Several airlines have suspended services to Israeli airports, and governments are working to evacuate their citizens.
Evacuating Brazilians from Israel
The Brazilian Air Force has deployed several military aircraft on missions to evacuate Brazilians still in Israel, including the recently purchased Airbus A330ceos from Azul Linhas Aereas. The Air Force shared on Twitter late last night that it was sending six aircraft to Israel: the two A330s, now referred to as KC-30s, two Embraer KC-390 Milleniums, and two VC-02 or Embraer E190s.
The first A330 registered as FAB2901, departed Natal late yesterday evening and headed for Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport in Rome. Flightradar24 only picked up the aircraft’s flight path sometime after it was already flying over the Atlantic and making its way to Rome, where it landed at 07:49 local time. According to Flightradar, there are two flights scheduled for departure from Rome to Tel Aviv, one today at 14:40 and one tomorrow at 09:40. This may be a glitch, or it may be that the aircraft will perform one flight today and return from Israel in time for another flight to Tel Aviv tomorrow.
About the aircraft
The KC-30 (Airbus A330) is the largest military aircraft in the Força Aérea Brasileira (FAB – Brazilian Air Force) fleet and can transport up to 238 passengers. After acquiring two planes from Azul, the aircraft were repainted and configured for military operations like logistical support, medical evacuations, and national and international humanitarian missions.
The Embraer C-390, also known as KC-390 in the FAB, is the largest military aircraft manufactured in the Southern Hemisphere. The multi-mission aircraft is Brazilian-made and is,
“…capable of transporting and launching cargo and troops and performing a wide array of missions including: medical evacuation, search and rescue, humanitarian search and rescue, aerial refueling (fighters and helicopters), aerial firefighting and humanitarian assistance.” – Embraer
The C-390 Millenium was given its official name and designation at the Dubai Air Show in November 2019, with the first aircraft having been delivered to FAB two months prior. This was the fruition of a project that began in 2009 when the Brazilian government asked Embraer to create an aircraft to replace its aging C-130 fleet.
The VC-02 aircraft are Embraer E190s purchased by the Brazilian government for presidential transport, replacing the old Boeing 737-200s, and was an addition to the fleet, which also included an Airbus A319 ACJ, purchased in 2004. The first VC-02 (E190) joined the presidential fleet in January 2010 and performed its first mission that week.