Leonardo’s M-345 Trainer Receives Initial Certification as per New European Standard

Leonardo today announced that the DAAA (Directorate for Air Armaments and Airworthiness), the Italian MoD’s Certification Authority, has issued the "Initial Certification" for Leonardo's new M-345 training aircraft.

The Initial Certification of the M-345 marks the first case of enforcement of the new AER (EP) P 21 rule for a fixed-wing aircraft. This rule adopts the European EMAR-21 - (European Military Airworthiness Requirements) – a stringent international certification requirement that will also be beneficial to the export of the aircraft.

This follows two hundred dedicated flights logged alongside the critical support of the Italian Air Force’s Flight Test Centre, 61st Wing and 10th Aircraft Maintenance Unit.

The M-345, thanks to its performance and advanced integrated training system provides the Air Force with a significant improvement in training effectiveness greater efficiency and a strong operating cost reduction.

The new aircraft, designed to meet basic and basic/advanced training needs, will complement the M-346s used for the advanced phase of pilot training and, in the framework of the "International Flight Training School" project, will support the reinforcement and internationalisation of the training offer launched by Leonardo in partnership with the Italian Air Force.

The Integrated Training system based on the M-345 allows the integration of the in-flight aircraft with simulated "friend" or "foe" elements, allowing the future pilot to be exposed to the complexity of every possible operational scenario.

The M-345 is a new basic training aircraft to complement the M-346s used for the advanced phase of pilot training and, in the framework of the "International Flight Training School" project, will support the reinforcement and internationalization of the training offer launched by Leonardo in partnership with the Italian Air Force.