Alenia Aermacchi believes it could sell around 100 armed examples of a dual-role M-346 that it is in the early stages of developing, with the model to provide operators with an affordable asset for use in low- and medium-intensity conflicts.
“This is the gap that the [Lockheed Martin] F-35 has created,” says Marco Venanzetti, Alenia Aermacchi’s director of flight operations. “There was an argument for one aircraft for all missions, but new scenarios suggest that operators will never use the F-35 for 80% of the likely missions over the next 20 years.”
Key requirements for a dual-role asset include persistence, precision, connectivity and speed to market, Venanzetti said.
“It must be something that can be done quickly, without a lot of need for changes or redesign, and must still be able to fulfil primary role,” he said, identifying a goal of having a product available within a 24-month period.
“We have arrived at this point, where we have an advanced trainer that is very capable and that can be used in such theatres with few modifications,” Venanzetti says of the M-346.
Weapons under evaluation for a dual-role version include the ATK/Elbit Systems GATR, Boeing Small Diameter Bomb I, Elbit Lizard 2, MBDA Brimstone and Rafael Spice, with the latter’s Litening targeting pod also being considered. The M-346 already can carry external fuel tanks, and is capable of being refuelled in-flight.
A Link 16-standard tactical data link would be used, and the aircraft also would gain defensive aids system equipment. Its existing Honeywell F124 engines also have the growth potential to support at 10% increase in available power.
“All of these can be installed with minimum changes or work on the aircraft,” Venanzetti said. He confirmed that the company has decided against installing a radar as, he said, “any change has to be simple, quick and cheap.”
Development is in the very first phase, but a package of modifications could be available by late 2017 or early 2018. “We are beginning with the [Italian] air force to define what is required. We have started to investigate all the technical solutions,” he says.
“In Europe, potential customers are telling us they can’t afford to do a daily air-policing role, and would need this kind of capability in the future,” Venanzetti notes. M-346 trainer customer Poland has been identified as one potential buyer for a dual-role development, due to an air-force requirement to replace its Sukhoi Su-22s by around 2025.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
