17th Raiders Wing

January 2021 August 2024 17th Raiders Wing it 17º Stormo Incursori 1 March 2003 – present Italy Italian Air Force Special forces Special operations 2 Group it Comando interforze per le Operazioni delle Forze Speciali (Joint Special Forces Operations Command) 240px|thumb|17º Stormo Incursori Operator The 17th Raiders Wing (it 17º Stormo Incursori) is the Italian Air Force special forces unit. It is the youngest special force created in Italy. It is based in Furbara, near Rome and part of the it Comando interforze per le Operazioni delle Forze Speciali (COFS—Special Forces Operations Command). Until 8 April 2008 the unit was named it Reparto Incursori Aeronautica Militare (RIAM—Air Force Raiders Group) but with the expansion and evolution of the unit's assignments and its size, the name was changed to "it 17° Stormo Incursori". Specialisations and capabilities Hostage Rescue Operations (HRO) Counterterrorism (Mostly Abroad) Direct actions Against HVT (High Value Targets) Military Assistance (MA) Special Reconnaissance (SR) Close Protection Units (Specialized in Abroad V.I.P. CPT) Non-Conventional Warfare Precision Airstrikes Against HVT (Special Ops. JTAC+ Capabilities) Tactical Interdictions (Specialized against Airbases and Aeronautical Site of interest) Combat Controller (CCT US/NATO Certified) Combat Search and Rescue (C-SAR, SOCM Capabilities) Combat Weatherman (SOWT) Pathfinder in Non-Permissive Environments Organization Raiders Group Raiders Group divided into Command, Operations, Vehicles and Special Equipment, and four it squadriglie (wings) of raiders, each of two to four detachments of eight to twelve soldiers. This means that the entire operational force will be (at full strength) from 64 to 192 soldiers. Training Group This branch provides training for the operational main force but is also capable of providing training sessions on Evasion and Escape and EOD/EOR/IEDD to other Italian army and navy units. Vehicles and equipment 17th Raiders Wing is part of 1st Special Ops Air Brigade which also includes 9th Raiders Wing equipped with modern HH-101A Caesar helicopters.http://www.aeronautica.difesa.it/comunicazione/notizie/Pagine/riorganizzazione-1-brigata-aerea-operazioni-speciali.aspx|1^ BRIGATA AEREA OPERAZIONI SPECIALI C-130J "Hercules IIs" and C-27J "Spartans" are also available. In the field, the operative force is equipped with the VTLM "Lince", quads and jeeps. This unit has access to a large arsenal of sniper rifles and anti-materiel rifles to be used to knock out aircraft. It also uses mini UAVs such as the "Strix" produced by Galileo Avionica, and L-3 Communication's "ROVER IV". The 17th Raiders Wing has a variety of armament and equipment.Ciocchetti Tiziano La situazione delle forze armate italiane: l'armamento degli incursori dell'aria http://www.difesaonline.it/mondo-militare/la-situazione-delle-forze-armate-italiane-larmamento-degli-incursori-dellaria Difesa OnLine 31 May 2019 Italian 30 May 2019 Pistols 9x19mm Beretta Px4 Storm Type D 9x19mm Glock 17 5,7x28mm FN Five-seven Shotguns Benelli M4 Submachine guns and personal defense weapons Heckler & Koch MP7 MP-5A3 MP-5SD3 Assault and battle rifles 5,56x45mm Heckler & Koch 416 Heckler & Koch G36 FN SCAR ARX-160A2 7,62x51mm Heckler & Koch HK417 IWI Aradhttps://www.israeldefense.co.il/en/node/56342 A first in Italy: Israeli Arad assault rifles & Negev machine guns in army service | Israel Defense 15 November 2022 www.israeldefense.co.il Light machine guns IWI Negev Sniper rifles 7,62x51mm Sr-25/Mk-11 7,62x51mm Sako TRG-22 8,6x70mm Sako TRG-42 Anti-materiel rifles 10,4x77mm BCM Europearms Extreme MAAR 12,7x99mm Barrett M-82A1 12,7x99mm PGM Hécate II Combat accessories Various Aimpoint, Trijicon and EOTech optical sights Schmidt & Bender PM-2 LAM 100/200 laser pointer Insight AN/PEQ-2, AN/PEQ-4 and AN/PEQ-15 (infrared) laser sighting systems Mako MEPRO MOR insight system Insight Mk23 thermal camera References Category:Air force special forces units Category:Air force units and formations of Italy Category:Special forces of Italy Category:Military units and formations established in 2003