Italy set to host the first international F-35 Fighter Jets training hub outside U.S.
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Italy will set up an international F-35 training center at Trapani–Birgi Air Base in Sicily, a program described as the twin of Luke Air Force Base’s school in Arizona. The move, signaled by Defense Minister Guido Crosetto in July and confirmed in September by parliament’s defense chair Nino Minardo, positions Italy to anchor fifth-gen pilot pipelines for European and partner fleets.
Italy is set to host the first international F-35 pilot training school outside the United States, with Trapani–Birgi Air Base in western Sicily chosen as the site, according to remarks by Nino Minardo to ANSA on September 12. Officials describe the facility as a Luke AFB look-alike, built to absorb allied conversion and continuation training demand as more European air arms field the jet. Crosetto previewed the plan on July 2, tying it to Italy’s broader training ecosystem that already draws foreign students to the International Flight Training School at Decimomannu.Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
An F-35 training center in the Mediterranean anchors allied presence along the seam lines between Europe, North Africa, and the Levant, and indicates that NATO’s fifth-generation ecosystem is evolving toward a distributed and resilient architecture rather than a U.S.-centric funnel. (Picture source: Italian Air Force)
The location follows operational logic. Trapani sits at the junction of major air and sea routes, within reach of restricted training areas over the central Mediterranean. The base already fields hardened shelters, a runway suited to a high sortie rate, and convenient access to ranges compatible with low-observable employment. Politically, the choice fits a long-standing trajectory in the program: final assembly and heavy maintenance at Cameri, full-wing production for U.S. aircraft, and an advanced pipeline at the International Flight Training School in Decimomannu that now draws allied students, including the first USAF cohorts. In short, the new schoolhouse extends an ecosystem rather than creating one from scratch.
Training content mirrors the aircraft’s systems. The F-35’s core sensor, the Northrop Grumman AN/APG-81 AESA radar, combines long-range air-to-air and air-to-surface modes and supports electronic warfare functions. Propulsion is provided by the Pratt & Whitney F135, a single-engine turbofan with around 43,000 lbf of thrust in afterburner for the CTOL variant used by Italy and most European partners. For data exchange, the CNI suite blends Link 16, which feeds the broader RMP/COP, with MADL, a low probability-of-intercept link for stealth-to-stealth communications. These are concrete parameters that shape the syllabus, simulation labs, and flight design.
The electro-optical layer is equally central and enables the Lightning II to act as a sensor-shooter under EMCON. The AN/AAQ-37 DAS employs six infrared apertures around the airframe, providing 360-degree missile warning, long-range cueing, and pilot imagery; coupled with EOTS, the package supports long-range identification without using the radar when the tactical plan requires it. Trainees will learn how to weigh these channels as the situation evolves and how to manage emissions to preserve the offset provided by low observability.
Italy currently fields just over thirty F-35s in operational service, split between the Aeronautica Militare (F-35A and a small number of F-35B) and the Marina Militare (embarked F-35B), reflecting steady growth from Cameri. Rome also plans to raise its acquisition target: the latest Documento Programmatico Pluriennale references an additional tranche of 25 aircraft to bring the total objective to 115 airframes, a mix of A and B variants, beyond the 90 initially set a decade ago. In parallel, the engine program follows its own industrial schedule, with continued Engine Core Upgrade work on the F135 to support Block 4 loads and durability across the F-35 enterprise, of which Italy is a part.
A Trapani syllabus will emphasize building an RMP/COP with multi-ship packages under EMCON, MADL-based targeting, and combined OCA/DCA sequences mixing stand-in and stand-off effects. Expect modules centered on threat envelopes (modern IADS with look-down AESAs, long-range SAM kinematics, passive sensors) so crews internalize when to push, hold, or pass a shot to a wingman to keep geometry. Interoperability will be practiced daily with Eurofighter participants and MALE ISR nodes feeding the picture, and with Link 16 gateways translating tracks from stealth platforms for legacy coalition packages. The aim is to generate early decision advantage, protect it through disciplined emissions, and deliver effects on timelines relevant to the joint force.
Decimomannu has shown that a joint industry-military campus with high-fidelity simulators and a demanding curriculum can host international classes without diluting standards. Transposing this model to the F-35 environment leverages the industrial and maintenance base at Cameri (FACO and MRO&U) so visiting fleets train near assembly and support sites. This proximity reduces downtime, stabilizes configuration control between training and line units, and shortens the feedback loop between operations and industrial support.
U.S.–Italy defense ties remain structured at NATO and bilateral levels. Rome contributes to the Alliance’s air-policing missions, the Forward Land Forces framework in Latvia, and the battlegroup in Bulgaria, and holds tactical command of the EU Aspides mission, while the U.S. Navy maintains Sixth Fleet headquarters in Naples. In 2024, Italy deploys 21 aircraft to Exercise Pitch Black in Australia and sends the carrier *Cavour*, illustrating combined training and joint projection with U.S. forces. This operational framework (NATO posture, combined training, and U.S. bases and commands in Italy) sustains a shared RMP/COP and EMCON practices suited to air-maritime missions and multi-domain integration.
European F-35 fleets are expanding (Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, the United Kingdom, Poland, Finland, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Belgium) while Luke’s capacity remains finite. A European hub reduces ferry costs, limits transatlantic personnel strain, and allows national instructors to rotate through a common core while respecting sovereign constraints. In practice, Trapani becomes a convergence point where tactics standardization meets national caveats, and where interoperability is trained rather than assumed.
An F-35 training center in the Mediterranean anchors allied presence along the seam lines between Europe, North Africa, and the Levant, and indicates that NATO’s fifth-generation ecosystem is evolving toward a distributed and resilient architecture rather than a U.S.-centric funnel. It offers partners a venue to align doctrine (from air policing to deep strike, from carrier integration to cross-border QRA) and to build a common RMP/COP able to absorb crisis friction. In a period marked by contested airspace, gray-zone pressure, and precision salvos, Trapani is about throughput, standards, and shared deterrence.
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Italy will set up an international F-35 training center at Trapani–Birgi Air Base in Sicily, a program described as the twin of Luke Air Force Base’s school in Arizona. The move, signaled by Defense Minister Guido Crosetto in July and confirmed in September by parliament’s defense chair Nino Minardo, positions Italy to anchor fifth-gen pilot pipelines for European and partner fleets.
Italy is set to host the first international F-35 pilot training school outside the United States, with Trapani–Birgi Air Base in western Sicily chosen as the site, according to remarks by Nino Minardo to ANSA on September 12. Officials describe the facility as a Luke AFB look-alike, built to absorb allied conversion and continuation training demand as more European air arms field the jet. Crosetto previewed the plan on July 2, tying it to Italy’s broader training ecosystem that already draws foreign students to the International Flight Training School at Decimomannu.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
An F-35 training center in the Mediterranean anchors allied presence along the seam lines between Europe, North Africa, and the Levant, and indicates that NATO’s fifth-generation ecosystem is evolving toward a distributed and resilient architecture rather than a U.S.-centric funnel. (Picture source: Italian Air Force)
The location follows operational logic. Trapani sits at the junction of major air and sea routes, within reach of restricted training areas over the central Mediterranean. The base already fields hardened shelters, a runway suited to a high sortie rate, and convenient access to ranges compatible with low-observable employment. Politically, the choice fits a long-standing trajectory in the program: final assembly and heavy maintenance at Cameri, full-wing production for U.S. aircraft, and an advanced pipeline at the International Flight Training School in Decimomannu that now draws allied students, including the first USAF cohorts. In short, the new schoolhouse extends an ecosystem rather than creating one from scratch.
Training content mirrors the aircraft’s systems. The F-35’s core sensor, the Northrop Grumman AN/APG-81 AESA radar, combines long-range air-to-air and air-to-surface modes and supports electronic warfare functions. Propulsion is provided by the Pratt & Whitney F135, a single-engine turbofan with around 43,000 lbf of thrust in afterburner for the CTOL variant used by Italy and most European partners. For data exchange, the CNI suite blends Link 16, which feeds the broader RMP/COP, with MADL, a low probability-of-intercept link for stealth-to-stealth communications. These are concrete parameters that shape the syllabus, simulation labs, and flight design.
The electro-optical layer is equally central and enables the Lightning II to act as a sensor-shooter under EMCON. The AN/AAQ-37 DAS employs six infrared apertures around the airframe, providing 360-degree missile warning, long-range cueing, and pilot imagery; coupled with EOTS, the package supports long-range identification without using the radar when the tactical plan requires it. Trainees will learn how to weigh these channels as the situation evolves and how to manage emissions to preserve the offset provided by low observability.
Italy currently fields just over thirty F-35s in operational service, split between the Aeronautica Militare (F-35A and a small number of F-35B) and the Marina Militare (embarked F-35B), reflecting steady growth from Cameri. Rome also plans to raise its acquisition target: the latest Documento Programmatico Pluriennale references an additional tranche of 25 aircraft to bring the total objective to 115 airframes, a mix of A and B variants, beyond the 90 initially set a decade ago. In parallel, the engine program follows its own industrial schedule, with continued Engine Core Upgrade work on the F135 to support Block 4 loads and durability across the F-35 enterprise, of which Italy is a part.
A Trapani syllabus will emphasize building an RMP/COP with multi-ship packages under EMCON, MADL-based targeting, and combined OCA/DCA sequences mixing stand-in and stand-off effects. Expect modules centered on threat envelopes (modern IADS with look-down AESAs, long-range SAM kinematics, passive sensors) so crews internalize when to push, hold, or pass a shot to a wingman to keep geometry. Interoperability will be practiced daily with Eurofighter participants and MALE ISR nodes feeding the picture, and with Link 16 gateways translating tracks from stealth platforms for legacy coalition packages. The aim is to generate early decision advantage, protect it through disciplined emissions, and deliver effects on timelines relevant to the joint force.
Decimomannu has shown that a joint industry-military campus with high-fidelity simulators and a demanding curriculum can host international classes without diluting standards. Transposing this model to the F-35 environment leverages the industrial and maintenance base at Cameri (FACO and MRO&U) so visiting fleets train near assembly and support sites. This proximity reduces downtime, stabilizes configuration control between training and line units, and shortens the feedback loop between operations and industrial support.
U.S.–Italy defense ties remain structured at NATO and bilateral levels. Rome contributes to the Alliance’s air-policing missions, the Forward Land Forces framework in Latvia, and the battlegroup in Bulgaria, and holds tactical command of the EU Aspides mission, while the U.S. Navy maintains Sixth Fleet headquarters in Naples. In 2024, Italy deploys 21 aircraft to Exercise Pitch Black in Australia and sends the carrier *Cavour*, illustrating combined training and joint projection with U.S. forces. This operational framework (NATO posture, combined training, and U.S. bases and commands in Italy) sustains a shared RMP/COP and EMCON practices suited to air-maritime missions and multi-domain integration.
European F-35 fleets are expanding (Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, the United Kingdom, Poland, Finland, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Belgium) while Luke’s capacity remains finite. A European hub reduces ferry costs, limits transatlantic personnel strain, and allows national instructors to rotate through a common core while respecting sovereign constraints. In practice, Trapani becomes a convergence point where tactics standardization meets national caveats, and where interoperability is trained rather than assumed.
An F-35 training center in the Mediterranean anchors allied presence along the seam lines between Europe, North Africa, and the Levant, and indicates that NATO’s fifth-generation ecosystem is evolving toward a distributed and resilient architecture rather than a U.S.-centric funnel. It offers partners a venue to align doctrine (from air policing to deep strike, from carrier integration to cross-border QRA) and to build a common RMP/COP able to absorb crisis friction. In a period marked by contested airspace, gray-zone pressure, and precision salvos, Trapani is about throughput, standards, and shared deterrence.
