Produced originally by Fiat, the G.222 was conceived in a number of versions, including a dedicated anti-submarine patrol aircraft, but most of these were abandoned and it was as a medium transport that the aircraft first flew on 18 July 1970. The first of 50 production aircraft was delivered at the end of 1978, replacing the Fairchild C-119 in the transport squadrons of the Italian Air Force. A prototype ECM version, the 222VS, equipped with extensive electronic installations and with accommodation for 10 systems operators, was also produced in 1978. The transport version had some export success, customers including Argentina (3), Dubai (1), Libya (20), Nigeria (4), Somalia (4), the USA (10) and Venezuela (8). Some G.222s were converted to the radio/radar calibration role and for fire-fighting duties.

Robert Jackson "The Encyclopedia of Aircraft", 2004