At the beginning of December, Italian military test pilots were able to test the new M345 (T-345A in Italy) jet trainer for the first time at Leonardo in Venegono. The first were Major Emiliano P. and Hptm. Francesco D. from the Reparto Sperimentale di Volo, followed by AMI Air Force pilots Major Marco F. and Major Ing. Raffaele Q. Leonardo calls his new trainer – rooted in the M.311 – HET (High Efficiency Trainer), which suggests that it offers jet performance at the procurement or operating costs of a turboprop (‘targeted’ is probably the PC-21). For the time being, the Italian Air Force is the launch customer with 18 of the aircraft, but this is set to rise to 40 in the final configuration. The T-345A will replace the MB-339A, also in the “Frecce Triccolori” aerobatic squadron.
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