Embraer and Anduril Team Up for Palletized Launch of Barracuda-500M from C-390 Millenium

Embraer and Anduril signed a Memorandum of Understanding to integrate the Barracuda-500M on the C-390, adding the capability to conduct palletized launches of kinetic effects.

Embraer announced on Jul. 21, 2026 a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Anduril to integrate the Barracuda-500M Autonomous Air Vehicle (AAV) on the C-390 Millennium transport aircraft for palletized launches. Signed on the sidelines of the Farnborough International Air Show, the collaboration comes as the 500M itself has been tested in the U.S. for palletized release within the Enterprise Test Vehicle (ETV) program.

The integration "expands the C-390's operational capabilities by providing a flexible, rapidly deployable solution for modern military operations," Embraer said. The company further said the agreement "boosts the C-390 Millennium beyond tactical air mobility to generate operational effects while preserving its core capabilities."

The palletized launch is described as a "Roll-on/roll-off mission system and conventional aerial-delivery procedures enable the C-390 to deploy mass effects in dispersed operations."

The C-390 obtained a good market success, as it is in service with or has been chosen by the air forces of Brazil, Portugal, Hungary, the Republic of Korea, the Netherlands, Austria, the Czech Republic, Uzbekistan, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, Slovakia, and Lithuania. The C-390 is also set to be modified with a boom refuelling system in collaboration with Northrop Grumman for the U.S. Air Force and an ISR-electronic warfare variant with Israeli company Elbit.

Anduril has already secured a U.S. Army contract for 3,000 Surface-Launched Barracudas (SLB-500M) for the service's Program Acquisition Executive FIRES (PAE FIRES) effort. A clause allows optional integration with the company's proprietary Lattice autonomous flight and guidance software for enhanced survivability in contested environments.

Anduril and Embraer in Europe

Most importantly, Anduril had secured a foothold in Europe only recently, when on Jul. 7, 2026 it announced a localized production deal of the SLB-500M with Poland's Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa S.A. (PGZ). The event was attended by Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Polish Minister of National Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, reflecting Europe's political push to bolster its armory and reinforce NATO's eastern flank before Russia.

Embraer too has recently signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with Poland's leading aerospace Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) company, Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze Nr 2 SA (WZL-2), a subsidiary of Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa Group (PGZ).

The Jun. 25, 2026 pact includes industrial cooperation between the two companies for "services and support [..] related to the KC-390," mentioned a statement. WZL-2 and Embraer "will jointly prepare a broad framework for future collaborations, encompassing a wide range of capabilities in services and support, aircraft completion and conversion, exterior painting, and systems integration."

Barracuda-500M palletized launch

The Barracuda-500M is an autonomous air vehicle, embodying Anduril's goals of simple engineering, established local supply chains, reconfigurable assembly lines and proven components to allow scalability and upgradability to afford mass in long, protracted conventional wars.

The ‘M' suffix in the Barracuda family of AAVs – the others being Barracuda-100 and Barracuda-250 – represents the kinetic effect mission. The ones without it are meant for ISR and other electronic warfare roles.

The Barracuda-500M's range is reported to be under 500 nautical miles (926 km), with a speed between 190 and 500 knots (350-926 km/h). The speed would also depend upon the type and weight of its warhead, and other payloads.

A September 2024 trial overseen by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) saw the Barracuda-500M released from the air "to emulate palletized employment from air-lift aircraft," Anduril had said. What aircraft was used to drop the missile is still not known.

The missile performed "autonomous navigation and flight for over 30 minutes, successful capture of a GPS coordinate target identified in Lattice, and autonomous terminal guidance to the target." This supported the prototype effort for the DIU's Enterprise Test Vehicle (ETV) program, where the modular design and Weapon Open Systems Architecture (WOSA)-enabled weapons blur the line between long-range One-Way Attack (OWA) drones and cruise missiles.

The image released by Embraer on the sidelines of the Farnborough International Air Show showed a rear shot of the company-owned KC-390 Millenium with its cargo ramp open, and the Barracuda-500M on a stand a few feet away in the foreground. No conceptual rendition exists of the Barracuda being released in palletized form from the Millenium.

That system would not be hard to develop as it entails simple engineering to have launch pallets that can fit inside most existing military airlifters, with drag chutes and electronic control units that release the munition before they begin their journey. Target destinations can either be pre-loaded, supported by prior reconnaissance, or fed in during launch from the interfaces operated by the loadmaster – depending upon mission needs. 

Barracuda-500M from C-390 Millenium

According to Embraer, the joint pursuit of "integration of Anduril's pallet-launched Barracuda-500M (B-500M) stand-off cruise missile into the C-390 Millennium […] represents a significant step in the aircraft's evolution as a multi-mission platform and force multiplier, supporting agile combat employment and addressing the operational requirements of U.S. and allied forces through enhanced interoperability and mission effectiveness."

President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security Bosco Da Costa Junior said making the C-390 capable of launching standoff, palletized systems for kinetic and non-kinetic effects "marks another important step in the evolution" of the aircraft. "Together, we are developing innovative solutions that strengthen mission versatility, support agile combat employment, and increase operational possibilities for our customers worldwide," he further added.

"Integrating the pallet-launched Barracuda-500M with Embraer's C-390 Millennium gives allied militaries a new way to generate massed, stand-off effects from a proven airlift platform," said Anduril's senior vice president Greg Kausner in the joint press release. "Anduril's Barracuda family of systems delivers rapidly producible, operationally relevant capabilities to meet the growing demand for affordable, scalable munitions."