Uzbekistan Replaces Soviet An-26s with Brazilian C-390s

By the end of 2026, the Brazilian aviation giant Embraer will deliver the first C-390 military transport aircraft to the Uzbekistan Air Force. In total, the republic will receive two such aircraft.

According to analytical company Cirium, Uzbekistan has completely decommissioned Soviet An-12 and An-26 airliners. Currently, its fleet consists of four Airbus C295s and two Il-76s. The latter, by the way, were built right in the country.

The new twin-engine C-390 can carry up to 26 tons of cargo, reach speeds of up to 870 km/h, and effectively take off from short unpaved runways.

At the same time, Uzbekistan relies on foreign solutions for updating both its military and civil aviation. It recently became known that the republic purchased six Chinese J-10CE fighters, despite talks of buying Su-30SMs from Russia.

Read more on the topic:

• MiG-29, Su-27, and past plans for Su-30SM: Uzbekistan unexpectedly chose Chinese J-10CE
• Foreigners bought An-32s for $1.6 billion, but Embraer wants to displace them
• India abandons Russian Il-76s and sets course for medium-sized transport aircraft