With the Ammaina flag ceremony, the "Frontier Baltic" mission, carried out as part of the "Baltic Air Policing" operation, ended today at the air base in Šiauliai in Lithuania, headquarters of the Italian TFA (Task Force Air) of NATO in the skies of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
From 1 January 2015, four Eurofighter Typhoons of the Italian Air Force with their pilots, technicians and specialists (in all about 100 soldiers of the 4 ° Stormo of Grosseto, of the 36 ° Stormo of Gioia del Colle and of the 37 ° Stormo of Trapani, with the contribution of other Departments of Armed Forces and Interforcements) have in fact guaranteed, 24 hours on 24 and 7 days on 7, the defense of the airspace of the three Baltic republics.
They have also been posted Air Defense Controllers Italians at the Lithuanian Repository and Control Center (CRC) of Karmelava, in order to provide training, assistance and supervision to the Baltic colleagues.
In eight months, the Task Force Air carried out in total about 900 flight hours, with 40 Alpha-Scramble (real Air Defense interventions) and over 160 Tango-Scramble (Simulated events for training in operational readiness), and many training missions for the maintenance of the full operation of the TFA and the operators of the Karmelava CRC.
The high level of reliability and efficiency guaranteed by the men and women of the TFA was also recognized by NATO, which assessed the Italian device with the maximum qualification of "Excellent", for the readiness of the pilots and the whole support system for land, as well as for the validity of the operating procedures in place.
Among the many civil and military authorities present at the closing ceremony, were the air team general Maurizio Lodovisi (commander of the Air Squad), the aerial team general Roberto Nordio (deputy commander of the Interforce Operations Summit Command), the commander of the Combat Forces of the Air Force, Air Division General Nicola Lanza De Cristoforis, Italian Ambassador to Lithuania Stefano Taliani De Marchio, Military Attaché for Poland and the Baltics, Brigadier General (EI) Filippo Camporesi. Lithuania was represented by the Deputy Defense Minister, Marijus Velička, and the Chief of Staff of the Lithuanian Interforces Command, Brigadier General VilmantasTamošaitis.
In his speech, the team general Maurizio Lodovisi, in addition to thanking the commander of the TFA, Colonel Vito Cracas, for his work, underlined how "this operation, although purely aeronautical, represents an undoubted success from the operational point of view and training for the entire national military sector.The skills expressed, the skills acquired and the results achieved have once again demonstrated the excellent level of efficiency and effectiveness of the Air Force in cross-border operations, as widely recognized in every forum, both it national and abroad ".
Colonel Cracas, commander of the Task Force, thanked all the staff, highlighting how the results of the 'Baltic Frontier' operation are "the demonstration of the great professionalism and the fruit of a continuous and constant training, both at home and abroad of the men and women in blue, but also proof of responsibility, sensitivity and awareness of the delicate task in a difficult international context ".
The TFA in Lithuania has also interacted a lot with the local community, with frequent and repeated relations with the national and local authorities, receiving visits from authorities, delegations and schools and with civil and military cooperation initiatives (CIMIC), which have helped to create and strengthen that relationship of mutual trust and esteem, characteristic of the Italian "comprehensive approach" in Military Operations Outside the National Borders (OFCN). In addition, humanitarian initiatives have been set up with various orphanages in Šiauliai and Vilnius, which have seen the involvement of TFA staff and their families at home, as well as national productive and "non-profit" organizations, in giving them a tangible sign of the Italian presence in Lithuania with collections of basic necessities and support for those most unfortunate children, also offering them a window on the culture and traditions of our country.
In the eight months of the "Baltic Frontier" mission more than 1.200 people visited the TFA, of which about 800 students among the 6 and the 18 years and 400 visitors, between national and local authorities, parliamentary delegations, military associations and the Lithuanian civil fabric .
