History
The Aermacchi MB-339 is a military jet trainer and light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Italian aviation company Aermacchi.
The MB-339 was developed during the 1970s in response to an Italian Air Force requirement that sought a replacement for the service’s existing fleet of Aermacchi MB-326s. Its design was derived from that of the MB-326, rather than a new design, and thus the two aircraft share considerable similarities in terms of their design. Aermacchi had found that the MB-339 was capable of satisfying all of the specified requirements while being the most affordable option available. The maiden flight of the MB-339 took place on 12 August 1976; the first production aircraft were delivered two years later.
Roughly half of all MB-339s entered service with the Italian Air Force, while the remainder have been sold to various export customers. As well as being used for training, the type is also flown by the Frecce Tricolori aerobatic display team. The type has been used in combat by both the Eritrean Air Force during the Eritrean–Ethiopian War of 1998–2000 and the Argentine Naval Aviation during the Falklands War of 1982. In both conflicts, the MB-339 was typically flown as an attack aircraft. In Italian service, the aircraft is intended to be replaced by the newer Aermacchi M-345.
Development
During September 1972, Aermacchi was awarded a contract to study a replacement for the Italian Air Force‘s aging MB-326 fleet, a type which had effectively been the standard advanced jet trainer of the 1960s.[2] During this study, designers at the company compared seven all-new designs (which were collectively referred to by the designation of MB-338) against an improved version of the MB-326, which was designated MB-339.[3] It was determined that the envisioned MB-339 would be capable to satisfying the established requirements of the Italian Air Force, while also being cheaper than producing any of the rival clean-sheet designs. Accordingly, Aermacchi submitted the MB-339 for official evaluation; during 1975, it was selected to replace both the MB-326 and the Fiat G.91T fleets that were then in Italian service.[3][2]
On 12 August 1976, the maiden flight of the prototype, designated MB-339X, took place.[2] During July 1978, the first production-standard aircraft made its first flight; during the following year, deliveries of the MB-339A to the Italian Air Force commenced.[4] The service would be the primary operator of the type; reportedly, between 1978 and 1987, 101 MB-339As would be delivered to the Italian Air Force, which is almost half of the total examples of the type to have been constructed to date
