TSAMTO, September 7. The Italian Leonardo Group, within the framework of a tender conducted by the Slovak Air Force, providing for the purchase of new jet TCB, offered the M-345 aircraft.
According to Shephard Media, Leonardo Group demonstrated a new TCB during the SIAF International Air show in Sliach at the end of August this year (August 27-28). New training aircraft are needed by the Slovak Air Force as part of the transition to the recently ordered American F-16C/D Block fighters.70 "Viper".
As part of the compensation program, Leonardo offers the organization of production and further maintenance and repair using the potential of Slovak companies such as LOTN, Virtual Reality Media (VRM) and Slavia Production Systems.
LOTN is a provider of aircraft maintenance and repair services, including UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and F-16 fighter jets. VRM develops training and simulation systems. Slavia Production Systems specializes in industrial processes and management.
As previously reported by TSAMTO, the Slovak Air Force in 2019 began to develop requirements for a new modern training aircraft on the eve of the delivery of 14 F-16 Block fighters.70. Since the L-39CM/ZAM available in the combat composition of the Slovak Air Force were adopted in the 1970s, they are ineffective for training pilots of the latest version of the F-16 Block.70.
In accordance with the agreement with the American side, the training of 22 F-16 pilots of the Slovak Air Force was to begin at the US Air National Guard Base in Tucson (Arizona) in 2022. They will be selected mainly from among the L-39CM/L-39ZAM pilots who are instructors at the Sliach Airbase.
On August 2, 2019, the commander of the Slovak Air Force, Brigadier General Lubomir Svoboda, said that L-39s could be operated for no more than six years, so the command began preparing requirements for a new generation of TCB, as well as evaluating the project budget.
The Slovak Air Force is expected to purchase up to 8 new TCB. At the beginning of August 2019, the Slovak International Aviation Festival was held on the basis of Sliach, where several European manufacturers presented their solutions. Officially, the Slovak Ministry of Defense announced a tender (issued a request for information) in October 2020. As it was later clarified, subsonic jet TCB M-345 and M-346 (Leonardo), "Hawk" (BAE Systems) and L-39NG (Aero Vodochody) will take part in the competition.
Aero Vodochody demonstrated the L-39CW, which is a test platform for the L-39NG. Leonardo Group introduced the M-345, and Grob – G-120TP, which can be applied before switching to the L-39NG, and then to the F-16.
In November 2021, the South Korean company Korea Aviation Industries (KAI) also announced its intention to participate in the competitive process. In particular, the Slovak Air Force was offered 10 FA-50 training/combat aircraft together with a package of related services worth about $ 500 million. According to the Defense Procurement Programs Agency of the Republic of Korea (DAPA), at the same time Korea Aviation Industries signed a memorandum of understanding with the Slovak aircraft repair company LOTN, providing for the implementation of a compensation package by the Slovak industry in the event of the acquisition of a South Korean jet TCB.
At the moment, there are only five L-39s in the Slovak Air Force (2 L-39ZAM and 3 L-39CM). The TCB is operated as part of the 2nd Squadron of the Tactical Air Wing named after Major General Otto Smik Sliach. The 1st Squadron operated 13 MiG-29s until recently, but all of them were transferred to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
