Aero Vodochody secures first African, North America customer for L-39 Skyfox

With the latest announcement, Aero Vodochody has now secured sales for its L-39NG Skyfox in Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. (Aero Vodochody)

Aero Vodochody has secured the first sales of its L-39 Skyfox advanced jet trainer aircraft to Africa and North America.

The Czech manufacturer announced the milestone on 18 June 2026, saying that two new contracts will see the company add to the sales already secured in Europe and Asia.

“With the signing of the new contracts, the L-39 Skyfox is entering two additional continents. Alongside Europe and Asia, the aircraft will now also operate in Africa and North America. Both orders are active, the aircraft are already in production and will be delivered according to the agreed schedules. The new contracts also mean that Aero's production capacity is filled until the second quarter of 2027.”

For the first African contract, four jets will be delivered to the Angolan Air Force. As noted in the announcement, this customer decided on acquiring the newbuild aircraft in place of refurbishing its older model L-39 Albatros airframes.

For the North American contract, an unidentified civil customer with experience of the L-39 Albatros will receive an undisclosed number of aircraft. This might be Airborne Tactical Advantage Company (ATAC), Draken International, Jet Warbird Center or the National Test Pilot School in the US, or AEX Skyline in Canada. Of these, Draken International is the most likely given an earlier collaboration agreement with Aero Vodochody for the type in North America.

Aero did not disclose values or delivery timelines for either contract.