Austria Finalizes Billion-Dollar Purchase: Twelve Italian Leonardo M-346-FA Jets to Replace Swedish Saab 105
Austria has completed the purchase of twelve Leonardo M-346-FA jets from Italy. This was announced by Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner and Economy Minister Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer (both ÖVP). The new weapon-capable subsonic jets close a capability gap that had existed since 2020 due to the decommissioning of the Saab 105.
The M-346FA (Fighter Attack) is a multirole variant capable of air-to-air and air-to-surface combat with a 3 tonne payload. / Picture: © Wikimedia Commons/ Anna Zvereva / Leonardo, M-346FA / CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en)
The total cost of the package, which includes armament, simulator, training, ammunition, and maintenance, amounts to around 1.5 billion euros. The unit price per jet is approximately 80 million euros. The aircraft are to be stationed at Vogler Air Base in Linz-Hörsching from 2028, where they will strengthen airspace defense and pilot training.
Closing the gap and returning to pilot training
The purchase marks the first complete implementation of the Austrian Armed Forces' two-fleet strategy. In addition to the Eurofighters for the high-value fleet, Austria will now receive a second, lighter system for training and lower-intensity missions.
Defense Minister Tanner emphasized that the procurement closes a significant capability gap in the air force and increases the protection of Austrian neutrality against threats from the air. A key criterion for the purchase is the relocation of all pilot training back to Austria, which had to be partially outsourced abroad (including Italy and Germany) since the Saab 105 was phased out. This will strengthen operational sovereignty and reduce costs in the long term.
400 million euros in industrial cooperation
The purchase, which was conducted as a “government-to-government” (G2G) transaction with the Italian government, is closely linked to an industrial agreement. This is expected to trigger an investment volume of around 400 million euros in Austria.
Economics Minister Hattmannsdorfer emphasized that these collaborations will help strengthen the domestic security and defense industry and serve to return tax revenues to the domestic economy in the form of added value.
Austrian companies are expected to benefit particularly in the fields of aviation technology and the supply industry, digitalization and simulation, as well as research (materials technology, sensor technology). Governor Thomas Stelzer (ÖVP) welcomed the decision, as it enhances the military relevance of the Linz-Hörsching site and secures high-quality jobs in the long term.
Additional information about the system
The Leonardo M-346FA (Fighter Attack) is the lightly armed variant of the M-346 Master, which was originally designed as a modern training aircraft (Lead-In Fighter Trainer, LIFT).
The M-346FA can carry a wide range of NATO-standard weapons, including air-to-air missiles (e.g., AIM-9L Sidewinder), precision-guided munitions (PGM), unguided rockets, and bombs. The jets are equipped with Leonardo's state-of-the-art Grifo-M346 radar, which significantly improves airspace surveillance and target acquisition capabilities.
The M-346 Master training version is already in service with the air forces of Italy, Israel, Singapore, Poland, and Qatar. Austria is one of the first countries to procure the weaponized fighter attack version.
The necessity of the two-fleet strategy was anchored in the ÖBH 2032+ development plan in order to close the gap created by the retirement of the Saab 105 (which were partly used for interception flights) and the sole burden on the Eurofighter.