Italian Air Force’s famed acrobatic squad changes course on new planes

ROME — Italy’s Air Force acrobatic team is to switch to flying the Leonardo M-346 jet trainer after using the aging M-339 for decades, the Italian Air Force announced on Thursday.

The upgrade marks a change of plan for the team known as the Frecce Tricolori, which had previously planned to use Leonardo’s M-345 jet – a more basic version of the M-346.

The announcement of the use of the M-346 was made on Thursday at Istrana Air Base in Italy with the presentation of a jet in Frecce Tricolori colours, coinciding with the team’s return from a tour of the United States.

“The version of the M-346 presented in Istrana today will be produced by Leonardo for the National Aerobatic Team with specific requirements of the Italian Air Force,” Leonardo said in a statement.

The Air Force originally envisioned adopting Leonardo’s M-345 for the acrobatic role as well as to replace all its M-339 trainer aircraft which entered service in 1982.

While the M-346 is designed as an advanced jet trainer, the M-345 is built to compete with equivalent turbo-prop basic trainers on operational costs.

The M-346 is now in service with the air forces of Italy, the Republic of Singapore, Israel, Poland, Qatar and Greece, while Turkmenistan and Nigeria have purchased the light fighter version.

Nigeria is due to take delivery of the first six of 24 aircraft it has ordered by year end, the country’s Air Force has said.

Pilots from Canada, the U.K., Germany, Japan, Austria, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Sweden and the Netherlands have sent pilots to train on M-346 in Sardinia, Italy.