Last night, shortly after the 23: 30, two F-2000 fighters Euro Fighter of the Air Force, in readiness for the airspace surveillance service, took off quickly from the air base of Grosseto, home of the 4 ° Stormo, to intercept an ATR-42 civilian aircraft of Polish nationality, flying over the Italian territory on the route Skopje-Leipzig, had interrupted communications with the air traffic control bodies.
- Euro Fighter they quickly intercepted the aircraft on the Adriatic Sea and, as required by the procedures, they checked the situation of the aircraft and made sure that the crew had restored the radio contacts with the air traffic authorities. The two aircraft then returned to the base to resume the prompt service.
The complex defense system through which the Air Force ensures seamless surveillance of the national airspace is integrated, even in peacetime, with that of other NATO countries.
The chain of alert for this type of events and for the violations of the airspace in fact provides that the order of immediate intervention of the fighters ("scramble") is given by the CAOC (Combined Air Operation Center) of Torrejon (Spain), the NATO body responsible for airspace surveillance in the area.
Three are the Swords equipped with assets Euro Fighter, which Aeronautica Militare uses for the Air Defense service: the 4 ° Stormo of Grosseto, the 36 ° Stormo of Gioia del Colle and the 37 ° Stormo of Trapani, which feed in turn, according to need, even a temporary cell at the base of the 51 ° Stormo of Istrana.
The chain also includes the 11 ° DAMI Group (Airborne Integrated Missile Defense) of Poggio Renatico (FE) and the 22 ° Radar Group of Licola (NA), which have the task of leading the Air Defense assets by providing the necessary information to intercept potential air threats. The airspace monitoring activity is carried out by specialized and trained personnel, who have the qualification of Surveillance Controller or Interception Controller.
