Embraer C-390 Millennium

Updated: October 2026 – A gray-painted high-wing aircraft with a rear ramp comes in, but instead of droning propellers you hear the roar of two jet engines: that is most likely an Embraer C-390 Millennium. The Brazilian transport, formerly known as the KC-390, has had a remarkable career in Europe. Portugal and Hungary already fly it, and other countries such as the Netherlands, Austria, Sweden and the Czech Republic have chosen it. Here you will learn how to recognize it with certainty, how it differs from the Hercules and A400M and where your best chances of a sighting are.

What is the Embraer C-390 Millennium?

The C-390 is a twin-jet tactical military transport from Embraer. The Brazilian manufacturer, which you otherwise know mainly for regional jets like the E190-E2, built its largest aircraft to date with it. The idea behind it: a transport in the weight class just above the Lockheed C-130 Hercules that, thanks to jet propulsion, flies much faster and higher.

The key figures show what it is built for. The C-390 carries up to 26 tonnes, cruises at about Mach 0.80 and flies about 2,000 kilometers with a full payload, a good twice that with 14 tonnes. The cargo hold takes vehicles, pallets, a helicopter or up to 80 soldiers. It can air-drop loads and paratroopers, fly out casualties with intensive care equipment and, in the KC-390 version, refuel other aircraft in the air. A robust landing gear allows landings on unpaved runways.

Embraer unveiled the project in 2007, and the first prototype, registration PT-ZNF, took off on February 3, 2015. It is built at Embraer’s plant in Gavião Peixoto in São Paulo state. On September 4, 2019, the first production aircraft went to the Brazilian Air Force, which is considered the main customer. In the same year Embraer introduced the name “C-390 Millennium” at the Dubai Airshow. The type reached final type certification, and with it full operational readiness, at the end of March 2023.

Propulsion: airliner technology in a transport

Under the wings hang two IAE V2500-E5 engines. This is a variant of the engine that has powered countless aircraft of the A320 family for decades. It is built by the International Aero Engines consortium, in which Pratt & Whitney and MTU Aero Engines participate. Each engine delivers about 139 kilonewtons of thrust.

For spotters this has two consequences. First, the C-390 sounds more like an airliner than a military transport – the deep propeller drone of a Hercules is completely absent. Second, because of the high-mounted wing the engines hang relatively high, and the nacelles sit a good distance ahead of the wing leading edge.

The C-390 is flown by fly-by-wire with sidesticks, similar to modern airliners. Embraer carried over a lot of know-how from the civil E-Jet family. According to published operational data, the technical availability of the Brazilian fleet in the first three and a half years or so was about 80 percent.

The four features that are enough to identify it

You do not need any special knowledge for the C-390. Four observations narrow it down against all the other transports you see in Europe.

The combination of high wing, two jets and a T-tail is rare in military transport. In the end the military serial confirms the type. How military registrations are structured is shown in the article on serials of German armed forces aircraft using Germany as an example; the principle carries over to other countries.

C-390, C-130 or A400M?

Most mix-ups happen with the two other transports that fly frequently in Europe. The table puts the most important differences side by side.

Feature	C-390 Millennium	C-130 Hercules	A400M Atlas
Propulsion	2 jets	4 turboprops	4 turboprops
Tail	T-tail	conventional	T-tail
Max. payload	26 t	considerably less	37 t
Length	35.2 m	shorter or similar depending on version	45.1 m
Typical sound	jet roar	deep propeller drone	rich drone of the eight-blade propellers

The Airbus A400M shares the T-tail and rear ramp with the C-390, but has four large propellers and is visibly bigger. The Hercules is the type the C-390 replaces in many countries – in Portugal, the Netherlands and Austria, older C-130 versions in each case. Historically the Transall C-160 also belongs in this class, flying in Germany until 2021: two turboprops, conventional tail.

A special case is the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III: it is also a high-wing jet with a T-tail, but has four engines and plays in a different league size-wise. The guide Identifying military transports offers an overview of all the common types.

Transport, tanker, medevac: the roles

The C-390 is designed as a multi-role platform. Depending on its fit, it takes on very different tasks, and some of them you can see from the outside.

Exciting for spotters: the same aircraft can look different at your next sighting. An aircraft with refueling pods is a nicer subject at an airshow than the “bare” transport profile.

The users in Europe

Hardly any new military aircraft has spread through Europe as quickly in recent years. Here is an overview of the main operators and customers, as of October 2026 and to be read with caution because deliveries are ongoing.

Country	Ordered	Status	Base
Portugal	6	in service since 2023	Beja
Hungary	2 (ordered 2020)	in service	Kecskemét
Netherlands	5 (contract 2024)	ordered, replacing the C-130H	–
Austria	4	ordered, deliveries from 2028	Hörsching
Sweden	4 (plus options)	selected, procurement under way	–
Czech Republic	2	first aircraft delivered	–

Portugal was the first European customer and is also an industrial partner: the Embraer subsidiary OGMA builds components such as the landing gear fairings and fuselage sections. The first Portuguese aircraft arrived in October 2023 with Squadron 506 “Rinocerontes” at Beja Air Base in the Alentejo. Several aircraft now fly there, with more on the way. If you are traveling in Portugal, the Museu do Ar in Sintra is also a good introduction to the history of the Portuguese Air Force; at Lisbon Airport, on the other hand, military transports only show up occasionally.

Hungary ordered two aircraft in 2020, including an intensive care fit. The aircraft fly with the airlift squadron at Kecskemét, southeast of Budapest. When visiting Budapest it is worth looking up, but you are more likely to get the Hungarian C-390 in front of your lens at air days and airshows.

The Netherlands placed a firm order for the C-390 in July 2024, and five aircraft replace the Hercules fleet of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. The Dutch C-130s fly from Eindhoven Air Base, which shares its runway with civil Eindhoven Airport. Whether and when the successors will be based there is best checked for the current status. Sweden has also decided on four aircraft and is joining the joint procurement of the Netherlands and Austria.

Austria: the C-390 in Hörsching

For spotters in German-speaking countries, the Austrian Armed Forces are the most exciting news. Austria has ordered four C-390Ms; the type decision came in 2023 and the contract followed in 2024 as a government agreement together with the Netherlands. According to the armed forces and the broadcaster ORF, the first aircraft arrive in 2028 and the fleet is complete by 2030.

The home will be Vogler Air Base (Fliegerhorst Vogler) in Hörsching, which lies directly next to Linz Airport and shares its runway. The three C-130Ks that the armed forces took over second-hand from the Royal Air Force in 2003 fly there so far. The armed forces are retiring the first of them after almost 60 years of service; its last flight goes to Wiener Neustadt, where it serves as a training object for the special forces. According to ORF, the other two stay in service until 2030. For the transition period a cooperation with the Portuguese armed forces is planned.

Until the first Austrian aircraft arrive, the C-390 remains a guest aircraft in Austria. The most realistic chances come at the AIRPOWER in Zeltweg, where foreign transports regularly visit. At Vienna Airport military transports only land occasionally, for example during state visits or evacuation flights; then the spotters’ hill is the best place.

Where else you can find the C-390

Because the fleets in Europe are still small, a C-390 is a rare catch in many places. The following overview shows where your chances are best.

Place	Chance of a hit	Why
Beja (Portugal)	high	Home base of the Portuguese fleet
Kecskemét (Hungary)	medium to high	Base of the Hungarian aircraft
Linz-Hörsching	rising from 2028	Austrian Armed Forces base, only C-130s until 2028
Major airshows (AIRPOWER, RIAT)	medium	Embraer and user states like to show the type
Civil airports in Germany	low	only during ferry flights, exercises or relief flights

At airshows it pays to look at the list of participants: the Royal International Air Tattoo in Fairford regularly shows transports from many air forces, while the NATO Tiger Meet focuses more on fighter jets. Which events are worth it in Europe is listed in the overview Airshows in Europe for plane spotters.

You can follow military flights online in part, but not every aircraft transmits openly. How to find them anyway is explained in the article Tracking military aircraft online. And before you unpack your camera at a military airfield, read the rules in Photographing at a military airfield – much stricter requirements apply there than at a civil airport.

Photo tips specifically for the C-390

The C-390 is a rewarding subject: compact, stocky and with clean lines. A few points make the difference.

You work out when the light suits your vantage point with Planetrack’s sun position planner. How to choose the shutter speed for propeller transports like the Hercules and A400M is explained in the article Photographing propellers. The guide to rare aircraft puts into perspective how rare a C-390 sighting is by comparison.

Common mix-ups and how to rule them out

Conclusion

The C-390 Millennium is one of the most exciting new arrivals in European military transport. Two jets, high wing and T-tail make it unmistakable once you have consciously seen it. It is still a rare guest in central Europe, but with the fleets in Portugal and Hungary, the new aircraft in the Czech Republic, the procurements of the Netherlands and Sweden and the arrivals at Hörsching from 2028, it will be seen more often year after year.