Aero L-39NG – the hot future of legendary Albatros

Czech company Omnipol, coowner of the Aero Vodochody, has announced signing of agreement with Ministry of Defence of Vietnam about purchassing 12 brand new Aero L-39NG and full support and training services during 2023-2024.

IMHO to train future jet pilots on turboprop a/c is counter productive, unless after something like T-6 they are sent to jet LIFT as it’s done in the U.S. If students are supposed to go to fighters straight from initial a/c, jet is only viable way to go. I really don’t buy that “jet like” performance of modern turboprop, like PC-21. Of course, in real life there are more things determining what to buy and viability and price might not be top of them.

One would hope so but the L-39NG is entering into a crowded and increasingly complex market space. I remember the fanfair around the L-139/L-159 launch that was aimed squarely at the L-39 upgrade and replacement market as well as going to toe to toe with the Hawk. I don’t think Aero were particularly helped by the large number of surplus L-39 that cropped up after the end of the Soviet Union at bargain prices! They were in effect competing against themselves!

The shift in the AJT/LIFT market towards supersonic types, the improvements in synthetic training aids and simulators means a number of nations are streamlining their training pipeline and even eliminating certain stages as the syllabus can be covered by less types only makes the market more challenging.

Aero are marketing this against turboprop trainers like the PC-9/21 and the T.6 Texan II which are strongly established in the market. The Texan is particularly problematic as it fits into the US FMS system as does the AT-29.

We shall see I suppose

Congratulations to the team! Hope this jet has bright future!

22. december – maiden flight has been successful….

Yeah, the nose is new, shorter and redesigned and there is higher grading of the seats in the cockpit, the air intakers of the engine are smaller…

What, no hot girls at the rollout? :very_drunk:
New canopy makes L-39NG look somewhat different. Reshaped nose?

straight wing heavy trainer like Hawk

The Hawk has swept wings and is supersonic in a dive.

Let me point attention how its exactly the emergence of a new generation of hih performance planes like Yak-130/M-346 or Fai T-50 that have opened a space for the revamping of such a class of light jet trainers like M-345 and L-39NG..
While there is a need of planes with swept wings, high angle of attack and high load turning in order to replicate performance of 4,5gen and 5gen planes their far greater cost , both in acquisition and for flight/hour made it impossible to use them in order to cover all the basic and advanced trainer part previously covered by straight wing heavy trainer like Hawk and MB-339.
Now until such planes would still work they will be kept anyway but for the future (or in case of my own country the present) there will be a great convenience into purchase a smaller and cheaper but still with good overall performance jet trainer in order to spare money in the basic and first leg of advanced training phase passing to the most capable one only when it would really be needed.

today´s rollout of the L-39NG

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https://ekonomika.idnes.cz/foto.aspx…55_5609130.jpg

12 L-39NGs to be delivered to RSW Aviation, one of the top military training providers in United States. The agreement also includes an upgrade of 6 legacy L-39s into the L-39CW variant.
10 + optional 6 L-39NG training aircraft to be delivered to SkyTech, the leading provider of military aviation services and funding solutions.