Elbit Systems Ltd, HAIFA, Israel: Elbit Systems Ltd. and Avioane Craiova yesterday held the rollout ceremony of the 1st IAR-99 SOIM training aircraft of LOT II.
The SOIM aircraft was developed for the Romanian Air Force by the Romanian aircraft manufacturer Avioane Craiova SA and was upgraded by Elbit Systems.
The ceremony took place in Craiova, Romania, with the auspices of senior Romanian government officials, high ranked Romanian Air Force officers and local Romanian industry representatives.
The IAR-99 is equipped with Elbit's advanced avionics systems, including the Virtual Training package ACTS (Advanced Combat Training System).
The aircraft will be used by the Romanian Air Force as a trainer and for Close Air Support (CAS) missions.
The advanced training features of the aircraft allow the Romanian Air Force to train its pilots for the modernized MIG 21 aircraft as well as for the next generation fighter combat aircraft.
This SOIM LOT II program follows a previous upgrade of 4 IAR-99 SOIM aircraft that were already delivered to the customer and are operational, to the full satisfaction of the customer.
A joint venture of the Romanian industry Avioane Craiova SA and Elbit Systems with the involvement of 3 other Romanian industries, the IAR-99 SOIM LOT II program provided employment to over a thousand Romanian employees.
The production of the IAR-99 SOIM took place in Avioane Craiova
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