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Embraer to Assemble A-29 Tucano LAS in Florida

​Jacksonville, Florida. Embraer Aircraft Holding, Inc. has signed a 10-year lease for a 40,000-square-foot hangar in which the A-29 Supe...

​Jacksonville, Florida.
Embraer Aircraft Holding, Inc. has signed a 10-year lease for a 40,000-square-foot hangar in which the A-29 Super Tucano aircraft for the U.S . Air Force Light Air Support (LAS) program will be assembled. Preparation of the facility is currently underway. The LAS aircraft are urgently needed to support the successful withdrawal of U.S . troops from Afghanistan.
The facility at the Jacksonville International Airport already is undergoing modifications. The facility will perform pre-equipping, mechanical assembly , structural assembly , systems installation and testing, and flight testing of A-29 aircraft.
U.S Department of Defense on Feb. 27 awarded, for a second time, a $427 million contract to Embraer and Sierra Nevada Corp. of Sparks, Nevada, its general contractor, to supply 20 Super Tucano light air support turboprop aircrafts.
The aircraft will help the U.S. to withdraw from Afghanistan by providing the Afghan army with the weapons and technology it needs to fight Taliban insurgents.
As the aircraft selected for the LAS program, the A-29 Super Tucano will be used to provide light air support, reconnaissance and training capabilities to the Afghanistan military. As such, it is a vital element of the United States Afghan withdrawal strategy and central to maintaining security in the region.
More than 170 A-29 Super Ts are in use with armed forces around the world. It has clocked more than 180,000 flight hours and 28,000 combat hours, with no combat losses, and it is certified for more than 130 weapon configurations.
The Super Tucano was also tested and requested by the U.S. Navy for Imminent Fury.
In 2011 Embraer opened a production facility for its Phenom 100 and Phenom 300 jets and a Global Customer Center in Melbourne, and in 2012, the company broke ground on a new Engineering and Technology Center, also in Melbourne, that will employ 200 engineers. Some 1,400 additional jobs will be supported through the LAS contract.