In recent weeks, 9th-century visitors basic raider course of the Italian Air Force (BIAM) have completed the training process to acquire the qualification of “1st level combat controller”, a course lasting several weeks which gives the Raider personnel of the 17th wing a peculiar and unique ability among the Special Forces of the Defence sector.
The qualification of combat controller It allows the Air Force raiders to land fixed and rotary wing aircraft on improvised landing strips, in semi-permissive and/or hostile territories, through the reconnaissance of the areas of operations, the analysis of their characteristics and the control of air traffic. The 17th Stormo Incursori is the only Italian Special Forces unit to exclusively express the ability to combat controller.
The course, included for the first time in the training process for the acquisition of the Brevetto di Incursore dell'Aeronautica Militare (BIAM), was held in a distributed manner involving various departments and Italian locations, including some civil airfields. In particular, the 46th Air Brigade of Pisa used a C-27J for landing on grass runways or in small airports without control services and for cargo airdrop activities; the 60th Wing of Guidonia participated with SIAI U-208A assets for the simulation of personnel evacuation activities from grass and asphalt airfields; the 9th Wing of Grazzanise with HH-101A helicopters ensured transport and extraction missions for Special Forces and helicopter transport of vehicles in non-permissive scenarios; the personnel of the 3rd wing of Villafranca ensured the preparation of the air-dropped loads and the execution of the Forward Arming and Refueling Point (FARP); the air space control training department (RACSA) of Pratica di Mare took care of training in air traffic control procedures; finally, the 72nd wing of Frosinone made available the semi-prepared grass runway.
The further novelty of the 2024 edition was the accreditation process of the CCSL1 course by theAir Force special operations command (AFSOC) of the United States Air Force (USAF). This process, included within a broad process of documentary, procedural and capacity checks carried out by the US evaluation team that began in July 2023, recognizes the Air Force Raiders' full interoperability with the American Armed Forces in activities called "Global Access Operations" (GAO) which include the landing of aircraft even on improvised strips of land, thanks to the use of combat controller.