Hungary receives first Millennium airlifter

The first of two KC/C-390 airlifters for Hungary was delivered on 5 September. (Embraer)

Hungary has received the first of two Embraer KC/C-390 Millennium aircraft for Hungary, the Brazilian manufacturer announced on 5 September.

The milestone came about four years after Hungary signed for two KC/C-390 tanker-transports in November 2020.

Hungarian Air Force (HuAF) aircraft will be particularly configured for tactical transport operations, air-to-air refuelling of the service's Saab Gripen C/D fighters, and for the medical evacuation role (the Hungarian aircraft will be the first to include provisions for an intensive care unit).

While Hungary has not yet disclosed where its KC/C-390s will be based, they could be stationed at Kecskemét Air Base, which was home to the now-retired Antonov An-26 ‘Curl' that the KC/C-390 is replacing. Alternatively, they may be co-located with the Boeing C-17 Globemaster IIIs of the NATO Strategic Airlift Capability (SAC) at Papa Air Base.

The KC/C-390s will join two Airbus A319 airliners that the HuAF has flown since 2018. The KC/C-390s will afford the capability to load outsized cargo via its rear ramp, which is not something the A319 can do.

The Millennium has a hold volume of 170 m³ (including the ramp) and a maximum payload of 23 tonnes (or a concentrated maximum payload of 26 tonnes over the centre of gravity). Company-released performance specifications give the aircraft a maximum cruise speed of 470 kt (870 km/h); a maximum altitude of 36,000 ft; and a range (with 23 tonnes of payload) of 1,380 n miles (2,556 km), or a ferry flight with internal fuel tanks of 4,640 n miles. The range can be extended by in-flight refuelling.