17th Raiders Wing
Italian Air Force special forces unit
The 17th Raiders Wing (Italian: 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 Comando interforze per le Operazioni delle Forze Speciali (COFS—Special Forces Operations Command). Until 8 April 2008 the unit was named 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 "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 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. C-130J "Hercules IIs" and C-27J "Spartans" are also available.
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