At the end of September, Militär Aktuell spent a day at the Leonardo aircraft factory in Venegono in northern Italy. The two jet trainers M-345 and M-346 are a hive of activity there – and Austria was also a topic during the visit.
If Leonardo has its way, the two new M-345 and M-346 jet trainers will soon be in service with numerous air forces around the world. In fact, the market appears to be huge and demand is high: Leonardo has already completed its first export order for the light fighter version of the M-346, and further foreign orders are in the pipeline. The Italian Air Force has also recently started to introduce the first 18 of its new T-345s (Italian designation for the M-345) in Lecce-Galatina, which will ultimately also equip the “Frecce Tricolori”. For Eduardo Munhos de Campos, Sales Manager of the aircraft division – a native of Brazil who has known Militär Aktuell well for years – the 102 aircraft sold and the high level of popularity come as no surprise. In addition to the advantages and improvements for pilot training, potential customers are particularly interested in the option of “downloading” real combat aircraft lessons onto the two Leonardo trainers, which is easy on the budget, says de Campos. The feedback from the first users confirms the high expectations – both in terms of flight performance, specifications, functions and fuel savings as well as in relation to the redundancy in almost all systems and with regard to the increased safety of the M-346 due to its two engines.
According to de Campos, there is another major advantage: “Both models can be seen not only as aircraft, but also as part of a revolutionary integrated system.” For the IPTS (Integrated Pilot Training System), modern, in-house developed simulation systems are used on the ground, which – with the same architecture and display as in the aircraft – make a large part of the type training (OCU – Operational Conversion Unit) in two-seaters of the operational type obsolete. As a result, the Italian Air Force has been able to reduce its hours on the Eurofighter two-seater by 50 percent and the Israeli Air Force is now transferring pilots from the 30 new M-346 Lavi aircraft to the operational type without any intermediate stops after the final advanced phase IV. A similar process is soon to take place in Greece, where the pilots will switch directly from the ten new M-346s to Rafale. The smaller and single-engine M-345HET (High Efficiency Trainer) is a new version inspired by the S.211 model from the 1980s (60 of which went to Haiti, the Philippines and Singapore), but with more composite materials and a new economical engine. Competitor Aero relies on the same engine for its L-39NG, although it is somewhat weaker than the Saab-105Ö recently parked in Austria. Six of the first 18 of a total of 45 T-345s destined for the Italian Air Force have already been completed and two aircraft have already been delivered. Thanks to external loads of up to 1.2 tons and already certified additional tank and sensor containers, the type can also be used as a weapons trainer. https://militaeraktuell.at/oesterreich-uebernimmt-die-trainingsmission-in-mali/ The M-346AJT (Advanced Jet Trainer) relies on more power and in this respect the lightweight fighter version of the M-346 is in a completely different league, which thanks to its high thrust and roll rate has already successfully performed “Red Air” roles in several exercises in Italy and Spain. The big plus of the M-346 is certainly the ETTS, the integrated simulation platform on which numerous sensors such as the on-board radar or target illumination containers as well as a range of electronic countermeasures can be simulated. All these sensors can also be used with other aircraft of the same type as if they were real, while also interacting with ground simulators to create and represent an environment typical of the latest generation of fighter jets. Compared to previous visits – Militär Aktuell was able to photograph the jets with the Polish or even Israeli production abbreviations in production – cameras were a “no-go” during our current visit to Venegono. Uniformed security personnel accompany guests and hosts at every turn and also keep an eye on cell phones. A laptop must be registered with a serial number at the security office, but can then be taken to a briefing room – but it stays there. According to the hosts, the increased security precautions are primarily to do with two current orders, which are not to be commented on at the customer’s request. This is not altered by the fact that in Turkmenistan the head of state himself documented his flight in one of two new “346s” (which are supposed to be part of a larger order) and that the letter abbreviations on fuselage parts suggest other future users. However, given the interest from Azerbaijan, Nigeria and Qatar that has been reported in specialist circles, the Italians’ approach comes as no surprise.
What is surprising from Leonardo’s point of view, however, is Austria’s continued restrained interest in jet trainers, which – the decision-makers there are convinced – could help the armed forces to reduce the costs of training domestic pilots abroad, which is said to be very expensive. Possible synergies could also arise from the continued operation or upgrade of the Bundesheer’s Tranche 1 Eurofighter. Both of these, as well as the planned purchase of the 18 AW169M helicopters selected a year ago, could be handled as part of a government-to-government deal. Incidentally, the details of the rotorcraft, which differ from the Italian version, are said to have been negotiated in the meantime. However, a contract to replace the domestic Alouette III fleet – which is scheduled to be phased out from 2023 – has not yet been signed at the time of going to press. What does exist – at least for the near future – is the training of two domestic student pilots in Lecce-Galatina. In future, however, this will only be on M-345s; the M-346 operation will move to Decimomannu in Sardinia in 2022 together with Leonardo’s new and internationally oriented IFTS pilot school. Argentina, France, Greece, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Spain, partly the USAF, Qatar and Germany, as well as – most recently – Japan, will then join us there to train the next generation of Phase IV jets on a total of 22 T-346As (Italian designation for the M-346).
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