AMX International AMX, RIAT 2014 ©Nigel Key
ROLE
Ground Attack Aircraft.
FIRST FLIGHT
15 May 1984.
The AMX International was jointly developed by Italy and Brazil as a ground-attack aircraft.
The AMX is a shoulder-winged monoplane mainly constructed of aluminium except for the tail fin and elevators which are made from carbon fibre composites.
The wing has leading edge slats and trailing edge flaps, with over-wing spoilers which can act as an air brake.
A large proportion of the internal space of the aircraft is used for avionics and computer systems. To aid maintenance all the avionics are fitted in bays underneath the cockpit enabling them to be worked on from ground level.
The flight controls are operated by fly-by-wire which actuates the control surfaces by a dual-redundant hydraulic system.
The rear of the fuselage is detachable to enable access to the Rolls Royce Spey turbofan engine.
The AMX has electronic countermeasures to protect the aircraft including passive receiver antenna and an active jammer pod.
There are four under-wing hard points and one centreline hardpoint which can carry bombs, missiles or rockets. The under-wing hardpoints can also carry drop tanks to increase the aircrafts range. There is also a fixed aerial refuelling probe for in air refuelling.
Optical reconnaissance pods can also be carried on the centreline hardpoint and wingtip rails can hold infrared guided air-to-air missiles.
The Italian AMX was fitted with a 20mm rotary cannon and the Brazilian AMX fitted with two 30mm revolver cannon.
PRODUCTION
The AMX International AMX was produced from 1986 to 1999, with around 200 built.
ENGINE
Rolls Royce Spey 807, producing 11,000 lbf.
ARMAMENT
1 x Vulcan 20mm Gatling cannon
2 x air-to-air Missile
8,378 lb (3,800 kg) Bomb load
The Italian AMX was used in operations over Bosnia in 1995 and in the Kosovo war in 1999.
In 2005 the Italian Air Force upgrade 55 of its AMX’s adding a new laser INS, new cockpit displays and fitting guided bombs.
In 2007, further upgrades of 53 AMX’s focusing on avionics and new armaments should extend the life of the fleet beyond 2027.
In 2009, four AMX’s were deployed for operations in Afghanistan in the reconnaissance role which was formerly done by Italian Tornados.
By the end of 2010, over 700 combat missions had been flown over Afghanistan. The last combat mission in Afghanistan was performed on 28 May 2014.
Italian AMX’s also served in Libya in 2011 deploying guided bombs and missiles during sorties and using the Litening targeting pods for the first time.
| Crew - 1 |
| Length - 43ft 5in (13.23m) |
| Wingspan - 29ft 1in (8.87m) |
| Height - 14ft 11in (4.55m) |
| Empty Weight - 14,840lb (6,730kg) |
| Max. Weight - 28,700lb (13,000kg) |
| Max. Speed - 654 mph (1,053 km/h) |
| Range - 2,070 miles (3,333 km) |
