FAdeA IA-73

History

The junior (basic) trainer is still the starting point for all military pilots before upgrading to a more advanced platform, so almost every major military aviation service in the world commits to some variant of the two-seat straight-wing Pilot, Prop form of drive. The last notable project of the Argentine Aircraft Factory (FAdeA) was the IA-63 "Pampa" series, revitalized by re-nationalization and pioneering the development and production of local solutions to the growing problems facing the Argentine Air Force.

Initially, we explored foreign-type procurement and local production, but ultimately decided it was necessary to work on making the trainer in-house - export was also a goal of the program. The result was that the IA-73 received financial support from Brazil, Bolivia, and Ecuador (Brazil, although the largest financial contributor to the program, has not announced active plans to purchase the IA-73 for basic coaching roles).

Currently, the Argentine Air Force will procure 50 aircraft, while Venezuela and Ecuador will procure 24 and 18, respectively.

FAdeA plans to build a pair of prototypes for actual flight testing and a pair of static cells for structural testing. It is planned to introduce I.A.73 to Argentine service sometime in 2017.

The final design followed a conventional arrangement, with two crew members sitting side by side amid a long, mostly windowed canopy. The engine is attached to the nose in the usual way, and the wing main aircraft is also located amidships.

The stern is traditional in layout, complete with a vertical fin and deep set horizontal plane. The wheeled chassis is a tricycle arrangement.

Inside, the cockpit will house an all-glass digital cockpit (believed to be of Israeli origin) and will be modular/upgradable in nature to accommodate future needs. The military version of the aircraft will be equipped with a "Zero Zero" ejection seat.

Propulsion is expected to come from a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 engine, which drives a four-bladed propeller in the nose - although there has also been talk of introducing a Chinese-brand engine for non-Western customers.

In addition to the military training role on display, the I.A. 73 is also marketed as an aerobatic model with great agility and will also find many buyers in the price-sensitive civilian market.

Dimensions and performance information shown on this page are author's estimates.

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes