GETAFE, Spain — Airbus Defence and Space has unveiled a detailed industrial participation plan for Spain's next-generation advanced jet training system, marking a significant step in modernizing the Spanish Air and Space Force while boosting domestic aerospace capabilities.
The program, known as the Integrated Combat Training System (ITS-C), will introduce 30 aircraft designated SAETA II in Spanish service. Based on Turkey's Hürjet advanced jet trainer produced by Turkish Aerospace, the fleet is intended to retire the force's remaining Northrop F-5M aircraft, which have served as the primary fast-jet trainer since the late 1960s.
Under the contract signed in late 2025 and valued at approximately $3 billion, Airbus serves as the Spanish prime contractor in a co-development arrangement with Turkish Aerospace. The plan emphasizes substantial Spanish content, with national industry securing around 60 percent of the workshare on elements that transform the baseline platform into a fully tailored national trainer.
The rollout is structured in two overlapping phases. Initial aircraft in standard configuration are scheduled to arrive from 2028, with one airframe set aside by Airbus for prototype integration of Spanish-specific avionics and mission equipment. Development of the associated ground-based training system, including simulators, will proceed in parallel for service entry around the 2029-2030 training year.
Subsequent work will bring all 30 aircraft to full SAETA II standard, updating the simulator suite accordingly. Final deliveries of the complete system are targeted between 2031 and 2035. In tandem, Airbus will oversee redevelopment of the Fighter and Strike School facilities at Talavera la Real Air Base in Extremadura, creating a modern training hub equipped with new simulators developed in partnership with Indra.
Core Spanish suppliers include GMV for inertial navigation, GPS and mission computing; Sener for datalinks; Aertec for remote interface units; Grupo Oesía for audio management; Orbital for the VMDR mission recorder; and Indra for identification friend-or-foe systems. Additional participants such as Aciturri, Aernnova and others will contribute to manufacturing, wiring harnesses and infrastructure.
Spanish Secretary of State for Defense Amparo Valcarce highlighted the project's role in reducing external dependencies. By empowering domestic firms to design, integrate and sustain the system, Spain gains the ability to perform maintenance, implement updates and evolve capabilities independently over the aircraft's lifecycle.
This trainer procurement forms one element of a broader Spanish defense renewal cycle that has included orders for C295 transports, a major helicopter modernization package and additional Eurofighter aircraft. With the advanced training segment now clarified, focus shifts toward longer-term front-line fighter requirements, where the path forward remains fluid following recent challenges in the multinational Future Combat Air System initiative.
The SAETA II program not only addresses an urgent training gap but also represents a strategic investment in Spain's aerospace sovereignty. By anchoring key technologies and support functions within national industry, officials aim to create skilled jobs, foster innovation and ensure the Air and Space Force maintains a robust pipeline of combat-ready pilots well into the 2040s.