Within the framework of the coverage carried out by Zona Militar during the departure of the logistics vessel ROU 04 “General Artigas” for the Antarctic Summer Campaign, Uruguay’s Deputy Minister of National Defense, Joel Rodríguez, confirmed that during the current year the Uruguayan Air Force will begin receiving its first Embraer A-29 Super Tucano attack aircraft, one of the most significant military acquisitions for the country in recent decades.
The statement was made in response to questions regarding the lines of work and acquisition plans currently being promoted by the Ministry of Defense. In this context, Rodríguez noted that this will be the first full year with the plans “already well structured,” after going through the entire budget preparation process. “During this year we will be receiving aircraft for the Air Force, in particular the Super Tucano aircraft—not all of them, but the majority,” the official stated, thereby confirming the effective start of the delivery schedule by the Brazilian company Embraer and the process of incorporating the new weapons system into the Air Force.
As Zona Militar has been reporting since the initial announcement of the program, the acquisition of the A-29 Super Tucano responds to the need to restore critical capabilities of the Uruguayan Air Force, especially those related to airspace surveillance, advanced training, and light attack. The arrival of these aircraft takes place in a context of progressive obsolescence of assets with decades of service, such as the A-37 Dragonfly, whose operational availability has been significantly reduced in recent years.
In parallel with the reception of the aircraft, the Uruguayan Air Force has been working on infrastructure adaptation and on the preparation of technical and operational personnel. Durazno Air Base appears as one of the central pillars of this process, in line with the need to ensure that the arrival of the aircraft translates into a real and sustained capability over time, and not merely a symbolic milestone.
During the same interview, Rodríguez expanded on the scope of the re-equipment plan by noting that, in addition to the Super Tucano aircraft, the acquisition of radars and additional equipment for the Air Force is underway, while equipment purchased for the Army is also beginning to arrive. “In that sense, it is going to be an important year,” he emphasized.
Photographs used for illustrative purposes – Brazilian Air Force.
You may also like: The Uruguayan Army officially confirmed the induction of M-ATV armored vehicles and trucks acquired from the United States
