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Italy Leonardo
M-346 Master
Twin-engine advanced jet trainer developed by Leonardo (formerly Alenia Aermacchi) to prepare pilots for fifth-generation fighters, featuring fly-by-wire controls and an embedded tactical training system. It serves the Italian Air Force's frecce tricolori-feeder syllabus and has been exported to Israel, Singapore, Poland and the United States (as the T-100 candidate).
In service since 2015 · 6 operator countries
Compiled from public sources ·primary reference ↗ ·last verified 2026-07-02
1,090
km/h
1,900
km range
13,800
m ceiling
3,000
kg payload
0.71
T/W
💲 ≈ $30,000,000 — Approximate flyaway cost
Procurement snapshot
Availability & export
Italian export-licensed
UAMA authorisation; standard EU/Wassenaar controls.
Channel: Direct commercial / G2G
Fielded & proven
Established · 6 operators
In service since 2015. Status: active · ~100 built.
Lifecycle cost (est.)
$75M – $105M
Acquisition is only ~30% of lifecycle cost — operating & support dominate over ~25 yrs. Rough 2.5–3.5× the unit price.
Interoperability
Derived guidance from public data — export regime by country of origin, lifecycle from the GAO ~30% acquisition rule. Verify eligibility, pricing and offsets with the manufacturer and your acquisition authority.
Full specifications
Performance
Speed, range, altitude and engagement capability.
- Max speed
Maximum level speed. For aircraft this is at optimal altitude; for ground vehicles, top road speed. Higher means faster response and better kinematic performance.
- 1,090 km/h Stronger than 82% of trainers
- Max speed (Mach)
Maximum speed as a multiple of the speed of sound. Mach 2+ is typical for air-superiority fighters.
- 0.95 Mach Stronger than 55% of trainers
- Range
Maximum distance: ferry range for aircraft, operational range for vehicles, maximum engagement distance for missiles. Higher means more standoff or persistence.
- 1,900 km Stronger than 63% of trainers
- Service ceiling
Maximum operating altitude. Higher gives energy advantage and sensor horizon.
- 13,800 m Stronger than 53% of trainers
- Thrust-to-weight
Engine thrust divided by loaded weight. Above 1.0 the aircraft can accelerate going straight up.
- 0.71
Firepower
Armament, payload and guidance.
- Hardpoints
External stations for weapons and pods. More means bigger and more flexible loadouts.
- 7 Stronger than 82% of trainers
- Weapons payload
Maximum ordnance weight the platform can carry. Higher means more strike capacity per sortie.
- 3,000 kg Stronger than 75% of trainers
Physical
Dimensions, weight and crew.
- Length
Overall length including gun/probe where applicable.
- 11.49 m
- Wingspan
Wingtip-to-wingtip span.
- 9.72 m
- Height
Overall height. Lower profile is harder to spot and hit for ground vehicles.
- 4.76 m
- Empty weight
Weight without fuel, ammunition or crew.
- 4,610 kg
- Combat weight
Fully loaded weight. Lighter eases transport and bridging limits; heavier often means more armor.
- 6,800 kg
- Crew
Personnel required to operate. Fewer reduces exposure; autoloaders trade a loader for mechanical complexity.
- 2
Propulsion
Engine, power and fuel.
- Engine
Powerplant model and type.
- 2× Honeywell/ITEC F124-GA-200 turbofan
- Engines
Number of engines. Twin-engine gives redundancy at higher cost.
- 2
- Thrust
Total engine thrust (with afterburner where applicable).
- 28 kN Stronger than 59% of trainers
- Propulsion type
Turbofan, turboshaft, diesel, gas turbine, solid-fuel rocket, ramjet…
- Turbofan
Sensors & avionics
Radar, sensor suite and datalinks.
- Sensors
IRST, EO/IR turrets, laser designators, sniper pods, thermal sights.
- embedded tactical training system, digital fly-by-wire flight controls
Program
Cost, production scale and operators.
- Unit cost
Approximate flyaway/unit cost where public. Defense pricing varies hugely by contract, offsets and configuration. Lower is cheaper.
- $30,000,000
- Units built
Total production run. Higher means proven manufacturing, mature logistics and spares availability.
- 100 Stronger than 36% of trainers
- Operator countries
Number of countries operating the system. More operators means broader support ecosystem.
- 6 Stronger than 63% of trainers
Specifications compiled from public Leonardo and reference sources ↗. Published defense figures are approximations — treat comparisons as directional. Last verified 2026-07-02.
Compare with rivals
See how it stacks up
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What is the top speed of the Leonardo M-346 Master? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master has a maximum speed of 1,090 km/h.
What is the range of the Leonardo M-346 Master? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master has a maximum range of 1,900 km.
What is the weapons payload of the Leonardo M-346 Master? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master can carry up to 3,000 kg of weapons payload.
How much does the Leonardo M-346 Master weigh? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master has a combat weight of 6,800 kg.
How many crew does the Leonardo M-346 Master require? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master requires a crew of 2.
What engine does the Leonardo M-346 Master use? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master is powered by the 2× Honeywell/ITEC F124-GA-200 turbofan.
How many countries operate the Leonardo M-346 Master? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master is operated by 6 countries.
How much does the Leonardo M-346 Master cost? +
The Leonardo M-346 Master has an approximate unit cost of 30,000,000 USD. Defense pricing varies by contract, offsets and configuration — treat this as directional.
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