As a follow-up to our earlier story on Nigeria’s attempt to purchase fighter aircraft, Leonardo Company, the Italian fighter aircraft manufacturer, has clarified that it has not entered into contract with Nigeria for the supply of M-346s.
In an email sent to Sundiata Post on Monday by its press office, Leonardo said “Please note that, to date, no M-346s have been contracted with Nigeria. Furthermore, Nigeria is not a C-27J Spartan customer.”
The statement further said “the aircraft has recently been placed on contract by an undisclosed customer. In addition, the M-346 has been chosen by Greece in the framework of an agreement between Israel and Greece.”
According to information available on the company’s website, “The FA (Fighter Attack) is a new version of the advanced Aermacchi M-346 twin-engine trainer, designed and manufactured by Leonardo’s Aircraft Division. It is an evolution of the dual role FT (Fighter Trainer) version, designed to meet Air Forces’ growing and diversified operational requirements.
“The FA is an extremely effective and low-cost tactical solution for the modern battlefield, as it offers Air Forces the greatest effectiveness with all the M-346’s AJT (Advanced Jet Trainer) features, including the advanced and pre-operational training capabilities of the basic version.”
