Dominican Republic Buys 8 Super TucanosBy andrew chuter
Published: 9 Jan 13:25 EST (18:25 GMT
LONDON - Embraer has confirmed the sale of eight Super Tucanos to the Dominican Republic in a deal that was finalized at the end of 2008, the Brazilian plane maker announced Jan. 9.
The turpoprop-powered aircraft is to be used by the Dominican Air Force for internal security and border patrol missions, primarily in the fight against drug traffickers.
The deal represents a significant increase in capability for the Caribbean nation, which shares a border with Haiti. Fixed-wing aircraft in the Dominican Air Force at present are limited to a handful of T-35B Pillan trainers and a small number of light transport aircraft.
Embraer declined to release any information on the delivery schedule. The deal is the third export success of the aircraft following sales of 25 aircraft to Colombia and 12 to Chile. To date, 63 aircraft have been delivered to the Brazilian Air Force. In all, 144 Super Tucanos have been sold.
The aircraft is an upgraded version of the Tucano basic trainer, of which about 650 are in service with 15 air forces across the world.
Source
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=3894717&c=AIR&s=TOP