The visit of the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Qatar Lt. Gen. Salem Ben Hamad Al Nabet at the Campus of the International Flight Training School, at the military airport of Decimomannu (CA), in Sardinia. Lt. Gen. Al Nabet, accompanied by a delegation, was welcomed by Air Force Corps General Silvano Frigerio, Commander of the Air Force Schools/3rd Air Region of Bari, from Brigadier General of the Air Force Davide Marzinotto, Commander of the Air Force Command for the Autonomous Region of Sardinia and of the P.I.S.Q.., and from Colonel Federico Pellegrini, Commander of the Experimental and Standardization Department of Air Shooting at Decimomannu.
The Commander of the 212th Flight Wing/IFTS, based at the 61st Air Wing, detailed the activities carried out by the Qatari trainees during the course, and Lt. Gen. Al Nabet presented the diplomas to the six trainees who completed Phase IV (Lead-in to Fighter Training – LIFT), preparatory to piloting the latest-generation fighter aircraft.
At the end of the visit, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Qatar expressed to General Frigerio his deep appreciation for the Air Force and the national industry for the high level that characterizes the IFTS, which allows for providing a very high quality in the training of pilots.
The’military airport of Decimomannu, The RSSTA, which is the headquarters of the Experimental and Standardization Department of Air Shooting (RSSTA), is hierarchically subordinate to the Inter-Service Experimental and Training Range of Salto di Quirra (Perdasdefogu), to the Air Military Command for the Autonomous Region of Sardinia (CAMRAS), for the functions of supervision and coordination with the other AM agencies present on the island. The RSSTA Commander is responsible for the airport detachment in Alghero, the Capo Frasca range, the Serrenti Armament Storage Section and the Observation (Weather) Nuclei of Capo Bellavista, Capo Caccia and Capo Carbonara, located outside the aerodrome base in Decimomannu. RSSTA coordinates, manages and controls the flight activities of the Air Force Departments, the other Armed Forces and the Allied countries, also ensuring logistical/administrative support. Within the base, in addition to’International Flight Training School, The product of the collaboration between the Air Force and the company Leonardo, it is also present in’80th Search and Rescue (SAR) Center operated by the 15th Stormo in Cervia.
An employee of the A.M./3rd Air Regional Command of Bari 61st Wing It has the task of providing flight training on aerobatics aircraft: phase 2 – Primary Pilot Training, common to all military pilot trainees, aimed at identifying the lines on which they will fly; phase 3 – Specialised Pilot Training, addressed exclusively to selected pilot trainees for the “Fighter” lines that ends with the acquisition of the military pilot’s certificate (the eagle with the sickle); phase 4 – Lead-in to Fighter Training – LIFT at the 212th Flying Group/IFTS, This technology is a precursor to its subsequent use on the latest generation fighter aircraft.’International Flight Training School (IFTS) is an Italian excellence of international value, a reference point for the advanced training of military pilots from aeronautical companies worldwide who fly technologically advanced fighter jets, such as the Eurofighter or the F-35. The first courses at the Decimomannu base began already in July 2022, hosting foreign countries alongside Italian trainees.
