EMBRAER S.A.

Seeking to develop a domestic aircraft industry, the Brazilian government under then President Getúlio Vargas ' Estado Novo made several investments in the aerospace industry during the 1940s and 1950s. However, it was not until 1969, following the establishment of the Brazilian military dictatorship after the 1964 coup d'état, that Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica (Brazilian Aeronautics Corporation, shortened by syllabic abbreviation to Embraer) was created as a government-owned corporation. Its first president, Ozires Silva, was a government appointee, and the company initially only produced a turboprop passenger aircraft, the Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante. The city of São José dos Campos was chosen to host the company's headquarters because it had already hosted, since 1950, the Technological Institute of Aeronautics (ITA), the first higher education institution in Brazil dedicated to the aerospace sector.

Early growth

The Brazilian government contributed to Embraer's early growth by providing production contracts. The company sold solely to the domestic market until 1975.

While military aircraft made up the majority of Embraer's products during the 1970s and early 1980s, including the Embraer AT-26 Xavante and the Embraer EMB 312 Tucano, [ citation needed ] it debuted a regional airliner, the Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante, which made its first flight in 1968, and the Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia, launched in 1985. Aimed at the export market, the EMB family was the first in a production series of small and regional airliners.

In addition to its own line of aircraft, beginning in 1974, Embraer was licensed by the United States' Piper Aircraft to develop, produce, and market its light airplanes, as Brazil was one of the world's leading importers of small single- or twin-engine aircraft. Piper first put together knock-down kits in its U.S. factory for Embraer to then assemble and market in Brazil and Latin America. By 1978, most parts and components were being sourced by Embraer locally. The aircraft were sold as the EMB 820 Navajo (Piper Navajo Chieftain), EMB 810 Seneca (Piper Seneca III), EMB 720 Minuano (Cherokee Six), EMB 710 Carioca aircraft (Cherokee 235 Pathfinder) and the EMB 711 Corisco (Cherokee Arrow II). Between 1974 and 2000, nearly 2,500 license-built Pipers were produced by Embraer.

Acquisition of Aerotec

Aerotec S/A Indústria Aeronáutica was a design and manufacturing company founded in São José dos Campos in 1962 under the auspices of the Brazilian General Command for Aerospace Technology. Beginning in the late 1960s, the firm manufactured a two-seat trainer for the Brazilian Air Force, the Aerotec Uirapuru. A small number were also built for the civilian market, and others were exported to other Latin American countries. [ citation needed ]

By 1980, Aerotec's main business was producing components for Embraer. However, around this time, the Brazilian Air Force became interested in an upgraded version of the Uirapuru. A prototype, designated Uirapuru II, was built; but, by the time it flew, the Air Force no longer required it. A small number were built for export. In 1987, the firm was sold to Embraer.

Privatization

Born from a Brazilian government plan and having been state-run, Embraer eventually started a privatisation process in 1992 alongside other state-run companies, such as Telebrás and Vale. Privatisation was a key policy of the economically liberal government of Fernando Collor, elected in the 1989 presidential election.

Embraer was sold to private investors on December 7, 1994, which helped it avoid a looming bankruptcy. The Brazilian government retained interest through possession of golden shares, which allow it veto power. Embraer continued to win government contracts throughout the 2000s and 2010s. [ citation needed ]

Initial public offerings

In 2000, Embraer made simultaneous initial public offerings on the NYSE and BM&F Bovespa stock exchanges. As of 2008 its NYSE-traded shares were American depositary receipts representing four BM&F Bovespa shares and it was partially owned by the Bozano Group (11.10%), Previ (16.40%), Sistel (7.40%), Dassault Aviation (2.1%), EADS (2.1%), Thales (2.1%), Safran (1.1%), and the government of Brazil (0.3% and golden share ), the remainder being publicly traded.

As of December 31, 2014 the shareholders with more than 5% of the company's capital were:

OppenheimerFunds, 12.29%

Caixa de Previdência dos Funcionários do Banco do Brasil, 6.71%

Baillie Gifford, 6.46%

BNDESPAR, 5.31%.

Product line expansion: military, regional and executive

In the mid-1990s, the company pursued a product line focused on small commercial airplanes over the military aircraft that had previously made up the majority of its manufacturing. It soon expanded to the production of larger regional airliners in the 70–110 seat range, and smaller business jets.

By May 2019, Embraer considered developing a new family of turboprop regional airliners in the 50–70 seat range, complementing the E-Jet E2, so as to free engineering resources. It would compete against older ATR and Dash 8 designs for 1.5 to 2 h flights over 500–700 nmi (930–1,300 km). In August 2021, Embraer released a new configuration with quieter aft-mounted engines for a 70-90 seat aircraft, with the E-Jet cross-section, aiming for a 2022 launch and a 2027/2028 service entry.

In March 2026, Embraer launched the first JAS F-39 Gripen for the Brazilian Air Force, result of technology transfer agreements signed between the Brazilian and Swedish governments in 2014, for the co-production and development of the fighter.

Executive jets

At the 2000 Farnborough Airshow, Embraer introduced the Legacy 600, a business jet variant of the Embraer Regional Jet, which entered service in 2002. Embraer Executive Jets was created as a dedicated subsidiary in 2005. That same year, the Phenom 100 was envisioned as an air taxi similar to the Eclipse 500, competing with Cessna and Hawker Beechcraft. It was introduced in 2008 and is the basis of the larger Phenom 300. The midsize Legacy 450 and Legacy 500 were jointly developed as clean sheet designs, while the Lineage 1000 is a VIP version of the E190. In 2016, Embraer delivered its 1,000th executive jet and had a market share of 17% by volume, though it lacked an ultra-long-range large cabin jet. In October 2018 Embraer announced two new business jets—the Praetor 500 in the midsize cabin category—and the Praetor 600 in the super midsize category.

As of 2026, Embraer remains dominant in the market for small and medium-sized private jets, with the Phenom 300 remaining the best seller in its class for the 14th year.

Military transport

On April 19, 2007, Embraer announced it was considering the production of a twin-jet military transport. Work began in May 2009 with funding from the Brazilian Air Force. Correios, the Brazilian postal service, has shown interest in buying this aircraft. Using much of the technology developed for the Embraer 190, the C-390 would carry up to 23 tons of cargo and aims to replace Cold War-era cargo aircraft.

As a result, Embraer developed the C-390 Millennium, a medium-size, twin-engine, jet-powered military transport aircraft with multi-role capability adapted to various missions. Brazil has been operating 6 units since 2019. Initially, thirty aircraft (including two prototypes) were to be delivered to the Brazilian Air Force. In February 2022, a new agreement was reached to supply 22 aircraft, with deliveries scheduled until 2034.

The KC-390, also known by its export name C-390 Millennium, has been an export success with several countries purchasing the aircraft or entering negotiations. Known orders and selections include:

Portugal: 6 units.

Hungary: 2 units.

Austria: 4 units.

Netherlands: 5 units.

Greece: 3 units.

Czech Republic: 2 units.

South Korea: 3 units delivered, with an undisclosed number of additional units closed.

Sweden: 4 units.

Uzbekistan: 2 units.

Lithuania: 3 units.

United Arab Emirates: 10 units, with an option to expand to 20.

Government subsidy controversy

Brazil and Canada engaged in an international, adjudicated trade dispute over government subsidies to domestic plane-makers in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The World Trade Organization determined that both countries had provided illegal subsidies to what were supposed to be privately owned industries. Brazil ran an illegal subsidy program, Proex, benefiting its national aviation industry from at least 1999–2000, and Canada illegally subsidized its indigenous regional airliner industry including in export contracts, comprising Bombardier Aerospace.

Failed Boeing-Embraer joint venture

On July 5, 2018, a joint venture with Boeing was announced that would have resulted in Boeing owning 80% of Embraer's commercial aviation division. This was seen as a reaction to Airbus' acquisition of a majority stake in the competing Bombardier CSeries the previous year. Under the 2018 plan, Embraer would retain its executive business jet and defence businesses. The resulting division would be known as Boeing Brasil – Commercial, though it was unclear whether the aircraft would be rebranded as Boeing models.

On November 18, 2019, Boeing and Embraer announced another joint venture, at 49% and 51% respectively, to promote and develop new markets for the C-390 Millennium tactical transport aircraft; the resulting entity would be called Boeing Embraer – Defense and would begin operating after regulatory approvals and closing conditions.

In April 2020, Boeing canceled its acquisition of Embraer's commercial operations after being heavily affected financially by the air crisis initiated by the COVID-19 pandemic and by the 737 MAX groundings. In November 2020, Embraer announced that its loss for the third quarter of the year was $121 million due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the travel restrictions.

STOUT light military transport aircraft

In December 2019, Embraer and the Brazilian Air Force tackled the development of a light military transport aircraft. The Short Take Off Utility Transport (STOUT) would replace its 64 EMB-110 Bandeirante (average age of 38.3 years) and 19 EMB-120 Brasilia (average age of 26.5 years) with similar dimensions.

Growing demand and expansion

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Embraer has experienced record growth driven by high demand for its smaller passenger planes, private jets, and military aircraft. In March 2024, United Airlines announced that the Embraer E175 fleet of its regional airline SkyWest, the world's largest operator of the E175, would be refurbished to increase storage space. The same month, American Airlines announced the purchase of 90 E175 aircraft in March, which will result in its entire regional fleet comprising Embraer aircraft by the end of the decade.

On May 2, 2024, Embraer delivered its 1,800th E-Jet aircraft, an E190-E2, to Royal Jordanian Airlines; less than a week later, the company delivered its first aircraft, also an E190-E2, to Singapore Airlines' low-cost carrier Scoot.

In 2026, Embraer reported that its order backlog had reached a record $34.5 billion; up to 255 planes are expected to be delivered by the end of the year, compared to 141 five years earlier, and an average of 90 every year before the pandemic. Much of the growth is led by the E2 line, due to increased travel on regional, short distance routes, as well as its relatively fast delivery time of less than two years. The company aims to expand production of E2 aircraft and enter the Turkish and Chinese markets before 2030.

Embraer's growth has prompted speculation that it may enter the narrow-body segment currently dominated by the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 Max. As of 2026, the company has made no formal commitment to expand beyond its current offerings.