The United Arab Emirates Government selects Finmeccanica for 48 M-346 advanced l

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The United Arab Emirates Government selects Finmeccanica for 48 M-346
advanced lead-in fighter trainer aircraft

The United Arab Emirates Government today announced at IDEX 2009 (International Defence
Exhibition & Conference) in Abu Dhabi that it had begun negotiations for the acquisition of 48 M-346
advanced lead-in fighter trainer aircraft manufactured by Alenia Aermacchi, a Finmeccanica company.
The agreement, which also includes the creation of a joint venture in the UAE between Alenia
Aermacchi and the Mubadala Development Company (Mubadala) to establish a final assembly line for
the M-346, is the result of close collaboration between the Italian Government and the defence
industry, which have worked together to capitalise on Italian excellence in the aeronautics high-tech
sector.
"The selection of the Alenia Aermacchi M-346 by the United Arab Emirates Government represents a
huge success for the Italian high-tech industry” said Pier Francesco Guarguaglini, Chairman and CEO
of Finmeccanica. “It is an endorsement of considerable strategic value for Finmeccanica, as it confirms
the supremacy of this advanced next-generation trainer aircraft at international level and paves the
way for further successes in the global markets, where others important campaigns are already under
way. The UAE Government’s selection of the M-346 forms part of a broader industrial co-operation
agreement recently signed by Finmeccanica and Mubadala which foresees, among other things, the
manufacturing of aerostructures in composite materials for the civil sector in Abu Dhabi”.
The M-346 “Master”
The M-346 “Master”, designed and developed by Alenia Aermacchi, a Finmeccanica company, is the
only new generation advanced lead-in fighter trainer aircraft currently under development in Europe.
The twin engine M-346 is tailored to train pilots to fly future combat aircraft and will be used in every
phase of advanced and pre-operational training, reducing the hours flown on more expensive aircraft.
In order to optimise training effectiveness and operating costs, the M-346 embodies the latest
concepts of “design-to-cost”, supportability and production optimisation, with an high level of
performances and a human-machine interface representative of new generation combat aircraft such
as the Eurofighter, the Rafale, the F-16 and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

Source
http://www.finmeccanica.it/EN/Common/files/Holding/Corporate/Sala_stampa/Comunicati_stampa/Anno_2009/ComFin_selezioneM346_25_02_09_ING.pdf

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If this goes through it will be huge for Finmeccanica and if I'm not mistaking the first sale for the newer advance trainers on the current market.