Embraer used the opening day of the 2026 Farnborough International Airshow on 20 July to announce a fresh package of C-390 Millennium training systems for the Swedish and Austrian air forces, extending the tactical transport's European common training footprint as more NATO members introduce the aircraft.
Level D simulator, cargo trainer and CBT for Sweden
Sweden's package is the most extensive of the two. It comprises a Level D Full Flight Simulator (FFS), a Cargo Handling Station Trainer (CHST) built with Rheinmetall, and a Computer-Based Training (CBT) suite delivered with ETI for maintenance and aircrew coursework. The Level D simulator — the highest civil and military certification tier — supports more than 350 simulated malfunctions covering normal, abnormal and emergency profiles across humanitarian, tactical and combat search-and-rescue missions.
Austria will receive a Computer-Based Training system supporting theoretical instruction and crew qualification for its incoming C-390 fleet. Both packages plug into the C-390 User Group's shared training ecosystem, which is designed to let operators pool simulator time and courseware across national borders.
Why NATO's C-390 buyers are pooling training
Sweden selected the C-390 to replace an ageing C-130 Hercules fleet and is buying four aircraft through a joint procurement with the Netherlands and Austria that accelerated deliveries under an existing production slot. Austria is acquiring the aircraft through the same multinational programme, opening the door to shared logistics, spares and long-term support alongside the training bundle Embraer unveiled today.
The training deal is a downstream play as much as an airframer's press release. Carlos Naufel, president and CEO of Embraer Services & Support, said the package “reinforces Embraer's commitment to mission readiness and operational excellence over the long term” and lets Sweden and Austria “maximise the C-390 Millennium's capabilities, while strengthening their interoperability and commonality.”
A growing European fleet builds market gravity
The C-390 Millennium is a medium tactical transport designed to carry payloads of up to 26 tonnes for cargo and troop moves, medical evacuation, search and rescue, humanitarian relief, firefighting and aerial refuelling. Embraer says the aircraft has accumulated more than 15,000 flight hours with the Brazilian Air Force since entering service in 2019, recording mission capability rates of 93% and mission completion rates over 99%.
Europe now accounts for eight of the C-390's confirmed operators — Portugal, Hungary, the Netherlands, Austria, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Slovakia and Lithuania — alongside Brazil, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates. Embraer delivered the Czech Air Force its first C-390 only weeks before Farnborough, and today's training announcement lands on the same day as several other headline deals at the airshow, including Anduril and Archer's Thunder tiltrotor unveil.
Reporting based on coverage from Aerospace Global News, FlightGlobal and Embraer statements at Farnborough 2026.