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martes, 17 de julio de 2018

Leonardo and the Italian Air Force launch “International Flight Training School” initiative: expertise and advanced technology serving military pilot trainees

- The collaboration between Leonardo  and the Italian Air Force would be  further extended to training of pilots in  the fixed-wing, rotary-wing and unmanned domains   
- Leonardo  is the leading  international training  solutions provider, with  products covering the entire training  syllabus from basic, with the new M-345, to advanced and lead-in fighter  training with the M-346


Rome, 17th  July  2018  –  Leonardo’s CEO, Alessandro  Profumo, and the Italian Air Force Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Enzo Vecciarelli, today signed  a collaboration agreement that  will strengthen the training services already offered  by the Air Force’s 61st Wing  and will  establish an all  new “International  Flight Training School” (IFTS) to  support military pilot training. The agreement was  signed at an official ceremony held today at the Farnborough  International Air Show in London,  UK. 

The IFTS will ensure the  further growth  and internationalization of the Italian Air Force’s training school while at the same time increasing its  capabilities and the range of pilot training  solutions offered to the customers.  The IFTS will leverage the existing training assets  and expertise in advanced military pilot training  of the Italian Air  Force in addition to Leonardo supplying four  additional M-346 aircraft, new systems and services starting from 2019. 

Based on the current plan, the IFTS  will be able to deliver courses for Italian  Air Force and international Air Force crews, fulfilling the training demands for military pilots  worldwide. Starting from 2021, the Italian Air Force’s entire advanced  and pre-operational training syllabus  will be moved to a  new, dedicated facility.

In order to maximize the success  of  this initiative, Leonardo  has been in discussions with two major international players and leading  companies in the  training sector, Babcock International  Group Plc and CAE, with  the aim to reinforce  IFTS capabilities. 

Alessandro  Profumo, Leonardo’s CEO, said: “as recently announced in  our industrial  plan, and thanks to the agreement with the Italian Air  Force,  we’re  officially entering the fighter  pilot training  service business. The International Flight Training School is based on a solid collaboration programme between Leonardo and  the Italian Air Force and the resulting operational synergies  will allow us to seize new  market opportunities and develop international  collaborations. We plan  to extend  this business model to cover training across  fixed-wing, rotary-wing and remotely-piloted platforms.”     

Italian Air Force Chief of  Staff, Lt. Gen.  Enzo Vecciarelli, said:  “this initiative is the result of our desire to join  two national champions to generate synergies  for  the benefit of the Nation.  The Italian Air Force  will strengthen its commitment in the advanced training  field, developing  a new  cooperation model with Leonardo.  The ongoing training programmes will benefit from new resources, including new trainers provided by Leonardo at no additional cost to  the Air  Force. This will  maximize  the quality of our military training pilots, who will fly 4th  and 5th  generation fighters.  It  will also meet the growing demand for training services from  international partners”.   

The Italian Air Force’s  advanced training syllabus,  based around Leonardo’s innovative integrated training system, has already  been demonstrated to be  modular  and  versatile among  pilots of several nations and  meeting the  needs of different air forces. The  syllabus meets the requirements of  Air Forces whose trainees have undertaken training modules for fourth and fifth generation fighters with the 61° Stormo at Galatina Air Base (Lecce). 

Leonardo’s integrated  training system is based on  the M-346  jet, designated  the T-346A by the  Italian Air Force. It is the backbone  of the  61° Wing, which trains pilots and instructors from Italy and nations such as the  USA, Spain, France,  Austria, the Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, Argentina, Greece and Kuwait. The  M-346 has already been  purchased  by  Italy, Israel, Singapore  and Poland for a combined order book of  72 units.   

Operational training, carried out by the Italian Air  Force with the T-346A, prepares pilots to transition  to the latest-generation combat aircraft including the  Eurofighter  and the F-35. The Galatina Air Force Base is also equipped  with live-virtual-constructive  (LVC) training technologies, including advanced CAE-built M-346 full-mission simulators. Leonardo’s  LVC enables trainees  on the ground to interact with pilots in  the air, flying real aircraft,  during the same training missions.