Embraer A-29 Super Tucanos for the Uruguayan Air Force
August 26, 2024
On 26 August 2024 Embraer announced the sale of up to six A-29 Super Tucano aircraft to the Uruguayan Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Uruguaya or FAU). The acquisition marks part of an FAU fleet renewal programme, and is intended to expand FAU’s operational capacity. The new aircraft will replace a small number of surviving A-37s serving with Escuadrón Aéreo Nº 2 (Caza) at Durazno.
Bosco da Costa Junior, President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security said that: “We are honored by the decision of the Uruguayan Air Force, another South American nation to choose the A-29 Super Tucano, an aircraft that is a reference in its segment in the international market. With this acquisition, Uruguay will have differentiated capabilities that will greatly contribute to the surveillance of its borders and increase FAU’s operational readiness.”
The contract provides for the acquisition of one initial aircraft with a commitment to acquire five additional aircraft, plus mission equipment, a flight simulator and integrated logistics services. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2025.
Uruguay will become the sixth nation in South America to operate the A-29 Super Tucano joining regional fleet of more than 160 Super Tucanos operated by Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Paraguay. These operate in the most austere and demanding environments in South America, from the humid and warm Amazon rainforest, the cold regions of southern Chile to the heat of the desert further north, from mountainous regions of Colombia and Ecuador to the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
The A-29 Super Tucano can be used for a wide range of missions including close air support, air patrol, special operations, air interdiction, JTAC, forward air controller (FAC), air and tactical coordinator (TAC), Armed ISR, border surveillance, reconnaissance, air escort, basic, operational and advanced training, transition to air superiority fighters, JTAC/LIFT and FAC training.
The Commander in Chief of the Uruguayan Air Force, General Luis H. De León, said: “It should be noted that since 1981 our country has not acquired new combat aircraft. It is precisely for this reason that the aforementioned purchase of aircraft will generate great motivation and professional satisfaction within the Air Force.”
Armando Castaingdebat, Uruguay’s Minister of National Defence said that: “With this addition, we are taking a great leap forward in improving our defense capabilities and responding to the needs of controlling our territorial sovereignty and fighting crime in all its forms.”
