On Friday 28 March, as part of the activities conducted by the Italian Air Force for the operational verification of its assets, the second phase of the campaign was concluded. Operational Test and Evaluation (OT&E) for the operational verification of the Eurofighter F-2000 aircraft equipped with the missile Beyond Visual Range Air to Air Missile (BVRAAM) – METEOR. This second phase followed the first, which ended in 2023.
The activity, which began in early March and involved the polygon Hebrides Range in the UK, was intended to evaluate the firing of the METEOR missile in operationally representative scenarios. For this purpose, F-2000 aircraft equipped with METEOR missiles and missiles Advanced Medium Range Air to Air Missile (AMRAAM) conducted missions, for the first time operating in this specific type of activity in an integrated manner with 5 aircrafta generation F-35 Lightning II.
To manage the complex device, the 1st autonomous flight unit RAV OT&E METEOR was established, deployed on the two air bases of Leuchars and Lossiemouth in Scotland (UK) and composed of approximately 170 soldiers from 28 different departments of the Air Force and placed under the command of Colonel Michele Schiavi.
The activity, structured according to a precise sequence of missions characterized by increasing complexity and flown against real targets remotely guided from the ground, was planned and piloted by the 4th department of the Air Force General Staff and developed by the “Typhoon Operational Evaluation Team – TOET'' – composed of pilots and engineers from the experimental flight department, weapons instructor coming from the flight groups of the squadrons equipped with aircraft Euro Fighter and mission data specialist of the Electronic Warfare Operational Technical Support Department (ReSTOGE). Furthermore, for the first time, the activity was conducted under the responsibility of the Initial Training Nucleus of the constituent aerospace warfare center of the air team command-1a Milan aerial region.
The test and evaluation activity, which follows the recent entry into service of the latest operational upgrade of the F-2000 aircraft, was carried out using a telemetric version of the missile called Telemetered Operational Missile (TOM) METEOR and experimental configuration aircraft equipped with Flight Test Instrumentation (FTI), which allowed, in coordination with the polygon structures, the real-time control and recording of all flight parameters, essential both for an effective and completely safe execution of the activity and for the verification of the real behavior of the weapon system as a whole.
At the end of the campaign, the commander of the 1st autonomous flight unit "OT&E Meteor", Colonel Michele Schiavi, highlighted how “the preparation and development phase carried out in Italy in the previous two years, long and meticulous, was fundamental for the achievement of the objectives that were set”. He then went on to underline how “The OT&E METEOR was an extraordinary opportunity to verify the operational capabilities of the most advanced weapon systems of the Air Force and at the same time a precious training opportunity for all the participating personnel who, operating in full synergy, were able to increase their experience and further improve the standardization between the various components involved”.
The METEOR is an advanced missile born from the partnership between Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Spain, France and Sweden. The 6 partner nations of the complex and ambitious program have created an industrial consortium that still exists, involving the national defense industries of the 6 countries. The METEOR missile, therefore, is the result of a political and strategic collaboration of absolute importance.
