Jacksonville Aircraft Maker To Build More Planes for Afghanistan
Embraer Defense & Security, a Jacksonville aircraft manufacturer, received an order from the U.S. Air Force to build an additional six A-29 Super Tucanos to be used by Afghan pilots for counterinsurgency operations and airborne self-defense for their government.
The new order comes after Embraer previously delivered 20 of the light-air-support-planes built at its facility at Jacksonville International Airport to be used in Afghanistan. The original contact was worth $427 million.
The first A-29 built in Jacksonville was completed in September 2014, and there are currently over 70 employees who work at the site where they have also built six A-29s for the Republic of Lebanon.
The Jacksonville facility specializes in building the Super Tucanos and will continue to bid for future contracts to keep the operation moving, said Alyssa Ten Eyck, a spokeswoman for Embraer – a partner company of the Sierra Nevada Corporation.
“We believe this decision demonstrates that the A-29 Super Tucano is the best aircraft for close air support operations, as well as the most proven, reliable and cost-effective solution for counterinsurgency and irregular warfare scenarios,” said Jackson Schneider, president and CEO of Embraer.
More information can be found in the Florida Times-Union article.