See inside the Brazilian C-390 Millennium that Boeing once wanted to buy but now doesn’t have an answer to [Video]

Boeing doesn’t have an answer to US aerospace company Lockheed Martin’s C-130 Hercules military plane — but it used to.

In December 2018, Boeing and Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer announced joint ventures that would give the American planemaker an 80% stake in Embraer’s commercial arm and a 49% stake in its new C-390 Millenium military jet.

A $4.2 billion Boeing-Embraer Defense deal was eventually rejected by the Brazilian government in favor of partnerships with Boeing instead that would benefit both companies.

Boeing needed Embraer’s valuable regional fleet to enter new markets, and Embraer could take advantage of Boeing’s marketing power and resources. However, the deal fell through in April 2020 at the height of the Covid-19 crisis.

Boeing blamed the fallout on Embraer for failing to meet unspecified contract conditions. The Brazilian planemaker rebutted Boeing, saying it met the joint venture conditions, but Boeing “wrongfully terminated” the deal due to financial and reputational challenges surrounding two 737 Max crashes and other business problems.

The bitter collapse …