Poland is looking to assemble its F-35 fighters in Italy

A Polish delegation visited the F-35 Final Assembly and Check-Out (FACO) in Cameri, Italy.

Poland is looking to assemble its F-35 fighters in Italy.

As we have already said in our previous article, Leonardo is strongly promoting the Eurofighter Typhoon in Poland despite the few chances to win over the F-35. However the Italian aerospace company could in any case remain involved in the program should Poland decide to assemble its F-35s at FACO-Cameri, Italy. This scenario appeared likely during the visit of a Polish delegation to Cameri.

On October 17, 2019 Italian Undersecretary of State for Defence Angelo Tofalo met with Polish Undersecretary for Defence Marek Łapiński, responsible for procurement, on the occasion of his visit to the italian FACO, the core of Italy’s participation in the F-35 programme.

According to Tofalo it was "…an important opportunity to show and illustrate the Polish delegation this Italian highly specialized assembly and maintenance plant for 5th generation aircraft."

The Polish Defence Ministry is evaluating the acquisition of 32 Lightening IIs to upgrade the Polish Air Force fleet. "Should Poland decide to green light procurement, and place its order with our plant, the resulting increase in our production would benefit our country also from the economic point of view, and we would make the most of the potential offered by a facility that is at the forefront in terms of technology and specialized manpower."

"FACO-Cameri, in fact, is the only European assembly, check out and maintenance facility for 5th generation fighter aircraft - Tofalo underlined - and is therefore an extremely relevant industrial presence. Moreover, its over one thousand highly specialized workers are themselves a relevant economic asset." Over the years, Italy has strengthened its dialogue with Poland thanks to military cooperation, by engaging both institutional and relevant industrial channels."

Written by Matteo Sanzani
Source: Italian Ministry of Defence