The first F-35 assembled in Italy at Finmeccanica – Alenia Aermacchi’s production facilities, has made its maiden flight successfully at Cameri’s Italian Air Force Base (near Novara). The F-35 is a new-generation multi-role aircraft with stealth characteristics, namely low radar observability, produced within the Joint Strike Fighter international programmme, led by the U.S. company Lockheed Martin.

Following its participation in the design phase through teams integrated with Lockheed Martin, Finmeccanica, through Alenia Aermacchi, is the industrial lead at national level for over 25 Italian companies. In detail, the Group is responsible for the assembly of the airplanes for the Italian Air Force, and part of those for the Dutch Air Force. Furthermore, the Cameri site is also the second production line for the wing components in addition to the main line managed directly by Lockheed Martin. The Cameri site has also been selected as the logistics support centre for aircraft in Europe. Finmeccanica is also involved in the production of some of the aircraft’s electronic components through Selex ES.

The success of the maiden flight testifies to Finmeccanica’s ability to respect its production commitments within a highly challenging programme under the industrial and technological profile. The programme foresees important technological and employment returns for Finmeccanica and the companies involved.