On February 11th, at the 32nd Wing of Amendola, the Italian Air Force hosted theF-35 air chiefs meeting, the meeting that periodically brings together the heads of the Air Forces of the Nations that employ the 5th generation F-35 omni-role fighter, or that have formalized the desire to equip themselves with it, or that are part of the F-35 Program.
The event is sponsored by U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Africa and is hosted in rotation by the participating Nations. General Hecker was welcomed at Amendola Air Base, the site of the first 2025 session of the event, by the Chief of Staff of the Italian Air Force, Air Force Lieutenant General Luca Goretti.
In addition to the heads and representatives of the air forces of Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Switzerland, Greece, the United Kingdom, Israel, Canada, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic and Finland, the meeting was also attended by Kelli L. Seybolt, deputy under secretary of the Air Force, International Affairs, and the representative of the program executive officer of the Joint Program Office (JPO).
Strengthening interoperability and integration between the Air Forces of all the countries that use or will use the 5th generation aircraft in Europe and in the world, to maximize the return in terms of operational capabilities that can be expressed: this is the objective of the meeting that saw the air chief present to discuss the issues of information sharing, mutual operational technical support, methods to improve operability, interoperability and integration with 4th generation assets, aligning perspectives on common challenges, including the deterrence that the F-35 User Countries, in a combined manner, can guarantee against common threats.
During the event, specific topics were also addressed, regarding the possibility of increasing interoperability also in the maintenance field, with the aim of ensuring compliance with the concepts of agile combat employment (ACE) and the reduction of logistical footprints, when landing and operating beyond the territorial borders of a nation.
THEF-35 air chiefs meeting has confirmed its strategic-operational relevance, ensuring in the meetings held at a maximum biannual frequency a forum dedicated to the Air Forces part of the Programme, to monitor the progress of the initiatives presented by the warfighter, provide shared strategic-operational directions and support for interoperability initiatives between them. The event also provides the opportunity to share all the lessons learned over the years of F-35 operations, the challenges to be faced and the solutions to be identified, systematizing all the skills and experiences of the participating countries in a constant constructive dialogue, always aimed at ensuring maximum interoperability and the expression of the operational capabilities of the weapon system.
