In recent days, the Army Command has made progress in purchasing a new anti-aircraft defense system that will allow the ground force to incorporate technology that has never been seen before in Latin America to intercept enemy drones and cruise missiles.
According to reports from military sources CNN Moneythe deal should be closed in 2026 and has a predicted value of up to R$3.4 billion – but it could still be reduced, depending on the negotiations.
The Army Chief of Staff, General Francisco Humberto Montenegro, signed an internal document this month that establishes the “guidelines for obtaining” the weapons.
In practice, these guidelines contain prerequisites that end up excluding the Indian companies BDL (Bharat Dynamics Limited) and BEL (Bharat Electronics), with whom Brazil negotiated the supply of the Akash anti-aircraft defense system, from the process.
The guidelines favor a possible order from the Italian MBDA, which manufactures the Emads (Enhanced Modular Air Defense Solutions) system, with participation from the company Leonardo.
It is the same family of surface-to-air missiles that should be used by the Navy on the new Tamandaré Class frigates, which are under construction in Itajaí (SC), guaranteeing interoperability between the Armed Forces.
The Army is preparing to send, in the coming weeks, an RFP (request for proposal) – a formal request for proposal, with prices and delivery schedule.
In the previous stages – RFI (request for information) and RFQ (request for quotation) – the Army received up to eight proposals. At these stages, however, the offers presented are not binding. In the RFP, suppliers must honor the information in case of an effective order.
Negotiations with the Indians did not go ahead because they wanted to sell a generation system prior to Akash to Brazil.
The most current, cutting-edge system has Israeli technology. According to sources, India insisted on negotiating more outdated equipment whose intellectual property is entirely its own.
Therefore, dialogue was intensified with Italy for a purchase under the “government-to-government” model (gov-to-gov) – when two countries negotiate directly, even if the contract involves private companies.
O CNN Money found that the Army is already discussing internally where to geographically position the new anti-aircraft defense systems and what technological compensation (offset) will be required from the Italians.
For offset, the tendency is to negotiate a technology transfer so that Embraer Defense & Security acquires the capacity to produce radars.
From a geographic point of view, the Army’s intention is to distribute two artillery batteries – each with 96 missiles – in three different locations.
One will be located in the 12th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Group, in Jundiaí (SP), and the other will be in the 11th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Group, in Brasília (DF). The third should go to the North region.
The objective is to protect the federal capital, as well as another strategic point (in the North) that has not yet been completely defined.
the Army seeks to reduce an important vulnerability. Today, the aerial interception capacity with missiles launched from the surface does not exceed targets above 3,000 meters in altitude.
By filling this defense gap, the land force seeks not only to prepare for possible military escalations, but also to increase deterrent power in an increasingly hostile international scenario.
