Leonardo: Poland exercises approximately 130 million euro option for four additional M-346 Advanced Jet Trainers

- Profumo:  “We are very  proud to have the  Polish Air Force’s complete  trust, reinforcing our close partnership  with Poland”

- Poland exercises option for  four more M-346s as outlined  in March 2018 contract

- By acquiring  four more M-346s, Poland’s fleet extends  to 16 aircraft, becoming the second largest  M-346 export customer

Rome, 14  December 2018 – Leonardo announces that the  Armament Inspectorate of Polish Ministry of National  Defense has exercised an option for acquiring four  more M-346 Advanced Jet Trainers (AJT) as outlined by the  contract signed in March 2018.

The  option,  valued at  approximately  130 million euro,  also includes a support  package as well as an upgrade  of the entire M-346 fleet to the  NATO STANAG 4193 Edition 3 IFF standard  developed by Leonardo. With this decision, the  Polish Air Force will complete its lead-in-fighter  training fleet modernization with deliveries within 2022.     

By  acquiring  four more M-346s,  Poland’s fleet expands  to 16 aircraft, becoming  the second largest M346 export  customer. 76 total M-346s have been  ordered by Italy, Poland, Singapore and  Israel to date.

Alessandro  Profumo, Leonardo’s  Chief Executive Officer,  declared: “Today, Leonardo  and the Armament Inspectorate  of Polish Ministry of National  Defense have taken an important step  together towards modernizing the Polish Air  Force. We are very proud to have the Polish  Air Force’s complete trust, reinforcing our close  partnership with Poland.”

Lucio  Valerio  Cioffi, Leonardo’s  Aircraft Division Managing  Director, stated: “With a comprehensive training  system including a fleet of 16 M-346s, the Polish  Air Force will have an outstanding, state-of-theart training  environment for its next generation of pilots.”

With  more than 50 years of experience  in the training sector, Leonardo  offers the most advanced training solutions  as well as a significant cost reduction of  up to 50% for an Air Force Cadet to qualify  as combat ready on a latest-generation fighter.

This  announcement  further strengthens  Leonardo’s presence in  Poland where it has 3000  highly-skilled employees at its  PZL helicopter site in Świdnik.  Leonardo has a long standing collaboration  with Polish Armaments Group (PGZ) which includes  the Rosomak programme for the Polish Army providing  the 30 mm Hitfist Turret in addition to supplying several  defense systems like the ground segment for the COSMO-SkyMed  earth observation satellites, early warning radar and coastal surveillance  systems contributing significantly to Poland’s security.

Leonardo welcomes Polish Bielik M-346

Warsaw, 28th  November 2018  – Leonardo is proud to  welcome the Polish  Bielik  trainer to the M-346 family. "Fly across Poland and laud the Polish pilot’s name, bring glory to the Republic of  Poland - I name you Bielik." With  those words, the Polish First Lady solemnly christened the M-346, which serves in the Polish Air Force. The ceremony, which took place in the 4th Training Aviation Wing in Dęblin on 24th November, was attended by President Andrzej Duda, the Superior of the Polish Armed Forces and representatives  of the Polish Air Forces, National  Security Bureau and Leonardo.

Congratulating Polish aviators on the implementation of the new pilot training system based on the M-346 Master aircraft, President  Andrzej Duda said: “This was a gigantic operation that completely changed the face  of the Eaglets School  both in terms of infrastructure and training. It will lead to a  change of the face of Polish aviation.”   

In his speech, President Andrzej Duda emphasized that Polish aviation has  received the world’s most advanced training system. He  expressed hope that Poland would soon host another batch of these aircraft to  create a training squadron in Dęblin that would serve more than Polish aviation. President Andrzej Duda also added that  the Bielik  is  a “revolution in the training of Polish combat aircraft pilots.” 

Marco Lupo, Vice President Leonardo for Balkans and Eastern Europe,  Head of the Leonardo Corporate Office in Warsaw said: “We are particularly  proud that  the Polish Air Force entrusted Leonardo with the mission of  co-developing an advanced fighter pilot training program based on the M-346 aircraft.  It is with great satisfaction that we participated in the christening ceremony which named the M-346 planes  Bielik  and we remain very hopeful that new  Bieliks  will soon join the Polish Air  Force, building the core of advanced pilot training system.”  

With heritage and expertise in  military pilot training,  Leonardo’s M-346 is the most advanced jet trainer aircraft available on the  market and the only one  specifically designed to prepare pilots to fly next  generation aircraft.  The M-346 is in service with the air forces of Italy, Singapore, Israel and  Poland. Thanks to the capabilities of the  M-346 platform including the Embedded Tactical Training  Simulation and its advanced Ground Based Training System, Leonardo’s M-346 Integrated  Training System guarantees a significant reduction in cost to qualify an Air Force Cadet as combat ready on a latest generation fighter.