On September 10th, Brazil’s Ministry of Defense published in the Official Gazette of the Union the Contract Extract No. 50/2024, regarding the replacement of a medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) Elbit Hermes 900 (RQ-900) drone for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). The agreement, valued at 50 million reais (US$ 9 million), was signed between the Aeronautical Material Park of Sao Paulo (PAMA-SP), responsible for maintaining various aircraft, and AEL Sistemas, the local subsidiary of the Israeli manufacturer Elbit Systems.
In May of this year, the First Squadron of the Twelfth Aviation Group (1º/12º GAv) of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), based at Santa Marina Air Base (BASM), lost a Hermes RQ-900 drone during a mission supporting flood victims in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. The aircraft crashed to the ground due to a technical failure.
The acquisition of the new Hermes RQ-900 was conducted directly, without the need for a public tender, based on Article 75, Section IV, Paragraph G of the Law on Bidding and Administrative Contracts (No. 14.133/2021), which states:
“Art. 75. The bidding process is dispensable:
IV – for the procurement whose object is:
g) materials for use by the Armed Forces, with the exception of personal and administrative materials, when it is necessary to maintain the standardization required by the logistical support structure of naval, aerial, and terrestrial means, with authorization by an act of the commanding officer of the military force.”
In addition to the FAB, the Brazilian Army and the Brazilian Navy also operate drones. For example, the Army has several strategic programs that foresee the acquisition of unmanned aerial vehicles, such as the Army Aviation Program, the Integrated Border Monitoring System (SISFRON), and the Full Operational Capability Acquisition Program (OCOP).
Note: The purchase comes amid an impasse over the acquisition of 36 wheeled 155 mm self-propelled howitzer armored vehicles, also produced by Elbit Systems. We have previously covered this issue.
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