In a demonstration of NATO’s integrated defence capabilities, Italian Eurofighters, based at Malbork Air Base, Poland, scrambled twice last week to secure Polish airspace as part of NATO’s enhanced Air Policing efforts.
The Italian Air Force has been actively collaborating with Polish forces to strengthen regional security and showcase the Alliance’s unity.
The scrambles included an incident on the morning of April 25, when NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre in Uedem, Germany, directed the Italian detachment to intercept an unidentified aircraft near NATO airspace over international waters. The aircraft, identified as a Russian surveillance plane, was escorted by the Italian pilots.
Colonel Gianluigi Colucci, commander of the Italian Task Force Air in Malbork, emphasised the routine nature yet critical importance of these missions. “In the early afternoon of the same day, a training sortie was swiftly converted into an alert mission, marking the second alert of the day and third of the week,” Colucci explained.
nice to see Italy doing anything.
You mean apart from their destroyer that has been in the Red Sea operations?
nonforbexample while most western militarys are actively fighting the hhouthi issue Italy isn’t.
It’s shot down drones as well and most western nations aren’t involved in the bombing missions so not sure what you are saying?
Their destroyers have 3 76mmm guns so they can destroy the drones at 6km without spending missiles.
Apart from keeping the med safe being nato’s southern flank etc.
I happily join in with the banter about 7 reverse gears on Italian tanks, but, in the back of my mind I remember the Roman Legions…
Just saying.
As to modern day bravery, ask their Judges and Carabinieri how they feel to be constant targets; can be an exceptionally brave people but, when they smell bullshit, they won’t risk their lives. Sounds good to me.
We also had plenty of retreats & routs in WW2, Norway, Dunkirk BEF, to & fro in N Africa until Alemain, Burma/Malaya/Singapore.
Yes, but O Connors rout of the Italian army takes some beating.
And we had lots of successes, Italy, not so much.
From what I learn about my Italian Grandfather, even he, apparently a fascist Blackshirt, did not want to fight.
The will to fight and ability to is often forgotten in everyone’s posts that so and so must be better than us because they are bigger.
Italy did not enter WW2 to fight, everyone in Italy know very well they had no capability for a full war. Italy was far from energy sufficiency and its aircraft engine industry had no capability. It entered the war to have a seat at peace conference that Mussolini was expecting after the fall of France. You can see in War in North Africa that Italy did not attacked any British force after declaring war. It only made a demonstrative attack against Malta and that was it. It laso did not attacked France until the French navy bombed Genova. In whole… Read more »
They also tried it on in the Balkans and got bogged down. To the extent Hitler had to intervene and postpone Barbarossa till 22 June.
Thanks Italy! Good job too.
The Italian AF did take a very small part in the Battle of Britain – needless to say it didn’t end well.
Fighting BoB with biplanes… 😃
Exactly! One of the greatest military formations ever.
Though to be fair, even quite early in the classical period of empire the number of Italians were few.
Innovation in the extreme to franchise the Legion system so that conquered people were able to serve and find opportunities anywhere in the Empire except their home country.
What did the Romans ever do for us?
PFLJ
Comparable fast-jet numbers to us now. 107 Typhoons and 48 (hopefully 74) F35B for the UK, 94 Typhoon and 75 F35A/B for them.
Don’t forget the AMX ground attack aircraft
Oh. They retired them in 2024. Still have 30-40 tornados. Possibly a squadron of ECR and one or 2 normal Versions.
There are stil about 10 Harriers operational in the Navy.