Italy's Ministry of Defence has awarded two contracts to Piaggio Aerospace that are together worth approximately €46 million (about $45 million). These contracts bring Piaggio’s order backlog to approximately €490 million.

The first order, signed by the Secretariat General of Defence and National Armament, is worth approximately €31 million and provides for the turnkey development, construction, and installation of a P.180-based full-flight simulator to be placed at the Pratica di Mare military airport, near Rome. According to Piaggio, the level-D device will be used mainly for the training of the crews flying the P.180 Avantis operated by the Italian Air Force.

This order includes the building of the facility hosting the device, which will also become the new headquarters of the Italian Air Force Crew Training Centre. The project—which Piaggio will be conducting in partnership with CAE (Booth 3935)—will take about three years. The aim is to provide other crews of the armed forces and potentially other parties access the simulator, under terms to be defined, Piaggio said.

The second contract, which is worth approximately €15 million and is ready to be signed by the Italian air force, further expands the 2019 agreement for the maintenance of the Rolls-Royce Viper V632-43 engines. These powerplants are fitted on Aermacchi MB339 jet trainers flown by the Italian Acrobatic Team Frecce Tricolori and others.

“The flight simulator that Piaggio is going to build for the Italian Air Force will be the first specimen of that kind in Europe and the second worldwide. This is a long-term investment that proves once again the great value of the P.180, an aircraft which has not expressed its full business potential yet, that will surely be exploited by the new owner of the company,” said Piaggio commissioner Vincenzo Nicastro.

“On the other hand, the extension of the agreement on the Viper engines represents the real acknowledgement of Piaggio Aerospace’s proven maintenance skills. Indeed, our company is the only one certified and licensed by Rolls-Royce worldwide to carry out these activities.”

Meanwhile, the sale of the company under “extraordinary administration” bankruptcy is ongoing. “The phase is delicate and requires the utmost confidentiality, but I can assure you that we are putting all our energy into selecting the buyer that offers the necessary guarantees, including financial ones, and undertakes to support the long-term future of the company,” said Nicastro.