Only six years have passed since the Israeli Air Force (IAF) received the first M-346s and in such a short time it achieved extraordinary milestones with the Italian-made jet like the 50,000 sorties flown.

At the beginning of July 2014 Leonardo delivered the first two M-346 aircraft to the Israeli air base in Hatzerim where they began to replace the old TA-4 fleet. The jets were part of the contract signed 2 years earlier between the Israeli Ministry of Defense and Alenia Aermacchi (now Leonardo). It involved the supply of 30 advanced M-346 trainer jets and related ground training systems. All aircraft are currently in service, the order was completed in 2016.

At the Israeli Air Force, the M-346, called Lavi, is used for the training of pilots and WSOs through its extraordinary abilities.

In 2017, the IAF made key modifications to the aircraft aimed at increasing its operational and training capabilities which are still in continuous expansion today. After the integration of weapons and external fuel tanks, Israel intends to upgrade hardware and software to dramatically improve crew training. The "Flying Tiger" Squadron's Deputy Commander said that their ultimate goal is to connect the entire air force fleet and carry out joint training missions with all combat aircraft types.

Israel is currently the largest user of Leonardo's advanced trainer jet.

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Written by Matteo Sanzani

Image: Israeli Air Force