The immediate take-off of two fighter jets from Grosseto's 4th Wing was ordered to intercept a small civilian aircraft that had lost communication with air traffic control centres.

The pilot of a small twin-engine touring aircraft is not responding to radio calls while flying in national airspace. This triggers an alert for what is technically termed a “comloss”, the prolonged absence of radio contact with air traffic control authorities, one of the situations for which the immediate intervention of the Air Force’s interceptor fighter jets may be necessary to intercept the aircraft involved, verify.

This is what happened late yesterday afternoon, when the Combined Air Operation Centre (CAOC) in Torrejon (Spain), a NATO body responsible for airspace surveillance south of the Alps, from the Canary Islands to Turkey and from the Azores to Romania, ordered the immediate take-off – the ’scramble“ – of two Eurofighter aircraft from Grosseto's 4th Wing, on air defence duty for national airspace. Their task was to investigate what was happening with a light aircraft flying from France towards southern Italy with which, as mentioned, radio contact had been lost. Within minutes, the two fighter jets – guided by Air Defence Control from the 11th DAMI Group of Poggio Renatico – reached the small aircraft near Circeo. After establishing visual contact with the pilot and confirming that radio contact had been re-established, they returned to the Tuscan air base to resume their air defence duties.

The service is guaranteed – for the surveillance, identification and control aspects – by the 11th Integrated Missile Air Defence Group (DAMI) of Poggio Renatico (Fe) and by the 22nd Radar Group of Licola (Na), while four Air Force Wings with Eurofighter assets ensure the Air Defence service: the 4th Wing of Grosseto, the 36th Wing of Gioia del Colle, the 37th Wing of Trapani and the 51st Wing of Istrana. Furthermore, since March 2018, F-35A aircraft of the 32nd Wing of Amendola have also been integrated into the national air defence system, contributing, with specific operational capabilities and latest generation technology, to the defence of Italian skies. These were the first 5th generation aircraft to be employed by NATO to surveil the Alliance's airspace in a NATO Air Policing operation.