MB-326 I-RVEG
Year built
1962
Aircraft
MB-326E
Base
Reggio Emilia Airport
The aircraft was delivered with the military registration number 54168 to the Italian Air Force “Scuola Volo Basico Iniziale Aviogetti” (jet basic-training flight school) in Lecce-Galatina (South Italy) in March 1962, painted in the standard high visibility orange livery as for every Italian Air Force’s trainer at that time. Its individual code was "68".
In 1975, during an overhaul at the Aermacchi factory, it was converted into an MB-326E, the armed version of the aircraft, of which only 12 were delivered to the Italian Air Force (six were produced as “E” version while the other six were the conversion of existing 326 trainers). This variant of the aircraft mounted on the wing pylons armaments such as missiles, bombs and pods. The aircraft was also equipped with a collimator and more sophisticated avionics, including miniaturised air-tactical navigation.
Once returned to its unit, the aircraft received the new individual code "70" and continued to serve at the flight school until 1985 when, with the entry into service of the Aermacchi MB-339, some of the MB-326s were assigned to liaison squadrons of the various ItAF Wings. The aircraft served in the 609th Squadron of 9th Wing (with the code “9-01”) for about a year before being transferred to Ghedi Airbase (North Italy) where it flew with the markings of the "Red Devils”, the bombers squadron belonging the 6th Wing. Its code was “6-43”, which is still painted on the fuselage today.
The aircraft was withdrawn from active service in 1989 and parked for static display purposes in an airfield in San Possidonio, near Modena. It remained there for nearly twenty years before being purchased by Mr Renzo Catellani, who completely restored it and made it airworthy again.
The restored aircraft flew for the first time in the summer of 2012 receiving the civil registration I-RVEG. It is one of the aircraft belonging to the Legend team.
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Aermacchi MB-326E
The Aermacchi or Macchi MB-326 is a light military jet trainer designed in Italy. Originally conceived as a two-seat trainer, there have also been single and two-seat light attack versions produced. It is one of the most commercially successful aircraft of its type, being bought by more than 10 countries and produced under licence in Australia, Brazil and South Africa. It set many category records, including an altitude record of 56,807 ft (17,315 m) on 18 March 1966. More than 800 MB-326s were constructed between 1961–1975.
The MB-326 had been developed and ordered during a period in which "all-through" jet training was considered by many air forces to be the most cost-effective model for training military pilots. It was intended to provide a single type of aircraft that could be used to perform both elementary and advanced training right through to a near combat-ready standard. In practice, it was soon discovered that the simplicity and economy of scale of operating just one type for all training purposes were outweighed by the purchase and operating costs of a large all-jet training fleet. Many operators soon switched to operating the MB-326 in conjunction with a cheaper piston-engined type for basic training purposes. Over time, the MB-326 found its primary role as a lead-in trainer to prepare pilots for transition to very high-performance fighter aircraft.
The Aermacchi MB-326 was a low-wing monoplane with an all-metal structure composed of light alloys. It was one of the first jet trainers to be developed with the aim of catering to both ab initio and advanced instruction. As originally developed, the MB-326 functioned as a refined but simple aircraft capable of covering the considerably wide range of performance characteristics required to cover both ab initio training and advanced instruction alike; other major characteristics of the type included the capacity to deliver a high rate of utilization in conjunction with minimised servicing and maintenance requirements. According to Flight International, the type was suitable for the teaching of the majority of advanced flying techniques. In addition to being relatively easy to fly, a high degree of safety was also intentionally built into it, including the adoption of new Martin-Baker-built ejection seats.
The MB-326 was powered by a single Rolls-Royce Viper non-afterburning turbojet engine, initial production aircraft were powered by the Viper 11 model, capable of generating up to 2,500 lb of thrust. The engine possessed multiple favourable attributes, including its general simplicity and robustness, relatively low revolutions per minute (RPM) and turbine entry temperature (TET), rapid acceleration, ease of installation, and its somewhat forgiving nature to mishandling in the air by students. Air was provided to the engine via a pair of low-profile intakes set into the wing roots. The Viper was produced under licence by Italian aviation company Piaggio following an agreement established with its original manufacturer, the British engine firm Bristol Siddeley, in 1959.
From a structural perspective, the MB-326 was relatively straightforward. Both the fuselage and the wing were constructed in three sections; of these, the centre section of the wing was integral to the fuselage. The fuselage was divided into a forward, central, and rear section; the forward section contained the nose wheel and radio systems; the centre part, accommodated the cockpit, fuel tanks and the engine; and the rear section which comprised both the tail unit and jet pipe. The fuel system had one large tank in the middle fuselage and two in the wingtips; a single-point pressure-fuelling system is located on the starboard side of the aircraft to provide a total refuelling time of around five minutes. The rear of each wing had flaps, and ailerons with a trim surface; each wing had 22 ribs and two spars. Wing fences were added mid-wing to increase the lift characteristics. Accordingly, the MB-326 was readily capable of performing relatively slow speed take-off and landing while retaining an excellent rate of climb.
The MB-326 was outfitted with a tandem cockpit configuration, this arrangement had been chosen to result in a slimmer and more aerodynamically efficient fuselage in comparison to the more usual side-by-side arrangement. It was covered by a bubble canopy for excellent external visibility; it featured a windscreen anti-icing system powered by the engine compressor using bleed air. The cockpit was also pressurised, enabling the MB-326 to conduct high-altitude flight. The ability to fly at higher altitudes was favourable for multiple purposes, including during the execution of aerobatic and navigational training, as well as improving fuel efficiency for long-distance flights. The onboard systems were typically pre-manufactured units that were easy both to access and to remove; several elements were also intentionally interchangeable. The exterior of the aircraft was covered by a total of 80 inspection panels and doors; in-situ engine inspection could be performed via a pair of large access panels set above and below the engine bay while another pair of doors allow access to the intake ducts interior for the inspection of the first-stage compressor rotor blades.
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