Embraer has delivered its 1,500th Ipanema, an aeroplane that is regarded as a ‘technological icon in Brazilian agriculture’ with five decades of operation. The aircraft, which received a ‘commemorative painting alluding to this historical moment and references to national agribusiness’, was received by the rancher Carla de Freitas, owner of Agropecuária Bela Vista and one of the founders of the Women’s Agribusiness Nucleus (NFA).

The delivery ceremony was at the Embraer facility in Botucatu, where the Ipanema EMB 203 aircraft is manufactured. Carla de Freitas said: “It is an honour to receive the 1,500th Ipanema from a genuinely national company like Embraer, which develops technologies to improve production techniques in Brazilian agriculture. Embraer is a company that demonstrates its commitment to Brazil’s technological, agricultural and environmental agenda, with an aircraft powered 100% by ethanol. Furthermore, being a woman receiving an aircraft from a female pilot demonstrates the company’s value and care with the gender inclusion theme.”

The celebration comes amid another year of record sales for the aircraft, which registered 39 new orders in the first five months of 2022. This volume is 22% higher compared to the first five months of 2021. Embraer’s agricultural aviation division delivered 42 Ipanema aircraft in 2021, an increase of 90% compared to 2020.

Sany Onofre, Embraer’s head of agricultural aviation, said: “Ipanema is a great ally for Brazilian agribusiness, and it is trusted by operators throughout the country. Given the favourable agribusiness performance, customers have been anticipating future crop demand and we are very satisfied with the growing results obtained thus far. Given this success, we are excited about the forecast for 2023.”