The second phase of the CAEX II exercise took place on October 23 at the Capo Teulada polygon, in Sardinia, which was based on the availability of the Italian Air Force. The exercise was coordinated and supervised by General Paolo Riccò, head of the AVES (Army Aviation) forces who organized this training to explore new possibilities for tactical deployment for Army Air Force troops.
The reference scenario taken into consideration for maneuvers was a NATO standard that hypothesizes a hostile amphibious operation conducted on the coasts of a friendly country. The task of the Italian army, in this case strategic reserve at the disposal of the allies, should have been to stem the enemy advance, awaiting the arrival of reinforcements to close the bridgehead of the hostile army.
The main idea behind the operation was that the airborne forces, including the paratroopers, can also successfully manage the containment of a circumscribed offensive, using the helicopters' support to penetrate the enemy lines. This effectiveness, however, and here the purpose of the exercise, lies not only in the equipment supplied by the army but in the ability of the officers to have a two-dimensional vision of the battlefield, taking into account on one hand the logistical and refueling of helicopters and on the other side the coordinated tactical movements on the ground. The coverage of the mechanized air forces in fact - in the case of the Italian Army the A129 helicopters Mongoose - it is indispensable for the advance of the troops, as well as for the safety of transport on the battle scene of the same. Hence the complex nature of the operation, which, as underlined by Riccò himself in the course of briefing with the press, to be effective requires perfect command coordination.
Caex II 2018 involved 530 soldiers in training, 1 aircraft Dornier-228 and 20 helicopters of AVES; among the latter, in addition to the aforementioned Mongoosearmed with "Spike" Israeli missiles were the CH47 C and NH90 tactical transport aircraft.
The operations took place close to the beach that delimits the military area, in excellent weather conditions which certainly benefited the management of the assets used in the field. As often happens, during the exercise, cases of rescue missions (Personel Recovery) were also simulated, carried out simultaneously with the main maneuvers.
In addition to the press, three officers from three countries of the European Union were called to attend the maneuvers.
At the end of the operations both the Army Staff and the AVES said they were satisfied with the performance of the same, while underlining the difficulty of coordinating the various aircraft forces, each with different capacities and supply times.
Italy is today one of the very few states in the world to have developed its own autonomous projectable force and in some way also the good outcome of exercises such as CAEX can confirm the strategic importance of this resource among those of the Army. The armed force has, after all, a long history behind it, having become the protagonist of important weapons facts for the history of our country, both in Somalia and in Afghanistan. The challenge is to improve its efficiency more and more, making it able to face the challenges, tactics and strategies that Italy may face in the coming years.
(photo and video of the author)
