The equipment provided to the Air Riflemen is capable of observing every movement outside the base, especially during nighttime hours.
The STRIX-C is a small remote-controlled aircraft (RCAP) weighing only 8 kg and is completely transportable. Measuring less than three meters in length and powered by an electric motor powered by two batteries, it is capable of flying at several hundred meters from the ground while photographing, recording, and transmitting in ‘
real-time’What is captured by its powerful optical unit, capable of operating both day and night. Recently acquired by the Italian Air Force, the STRIX-C is piloted remotely by two operators via a FCS (
Flight Control System), has been evaluated operationally as a whole in the Afghan theater by the ‘Air Riflemen’ who, together with the Alpine and Bersaglieri mountaineering troops of the Army, guarantee the defense of the perimeter of the Herat air base and the protection of the forces present within the base.
“
With the recent achievement of full operational capacity (FOC –
Full Operational Capability),
The STRIX-C, silent and difficult to detect, has enabled us to increase the security of Camp Arena; its sensors allow us to patrol the surrounding area, while making the route for our patrols that operate day and night outside the base safer.””, asserted the Chief of Staff of the Forward Support Base, Lieutenant Colonel Alberto Surace – who
he handed over the command to Lieutenant Colonel Spigolon in recent days -also responsible for the implementation of the project ’
STRIX’.
The daily work of the military personnel of the multinational contingent led by the ‘Julia’ Alpine Brigade, and in particular that of the FSB, also directly impacts the development of the civil airport in Herat, which, as is evident, plays a crucial role in the industrial and commercial growth of what is already the most developed province in all of Afghanistan. To prove this, it is enough to consider that from 2005 to today, the volume of air traffic at the Herat airport, of which the civil component is increasingly significant, has almost doubled.
The experience in operational theater therefore continues to demonstrate the extremely high effectiveness of remote-piloted aircraft for conducting reconnaissance and aerial surveillance activities. Especially in areas such as Afghanistan, in fact, due to the particular topographical characteristics, communication difficulties, and adverse climatic conditions, being able to provide accurate information about the surrounding territory in real time proves essential for countering the threat. Therefore, while on the one hand a new configuration is taking its first steps within the family of the Air Force’s Advanced Rapid Response Platforms (APR), on the other hand the ‘elder brother’, the now well-known and reliable ‘Predator’ – assigned to the ‘Astore’ Task Group of the Joint Air Task Force – continues to provide its indispensable support to the contingent on a daily basis, to the point of having, just in these days, logged over 11 thousand flight hours in Afghanistan for a total of approximately 1300 missions in support of the contingent’s operations, protecting ground troops and contributing to the security of the civilian population.
The Forward Support Base (FSB) in Herat, comparable to a squadron, is the international structure that manages the functioning of the entire air base and provides the necessary operational support for the air operations of the ISAF component in the western region of the country. Within it, the ‘blue-shirt’ personnel occupy almost half of the positions. The Air Force, in collaboration with its Spanish counterparts, ensures the provision of air navigation services, the airport fire service, logistical support – including the management of radio navigation and telecommunications systems – and also performs other key functions such as the defense of the installations – entrusted to the command of the ’Fucilieri dell’Aria‘ of the 16th Squadron of Martina Franca – security, intelligence, weather, and administration. Notable are the activities to combat explosive threats through canine units and the service of
air marshalling. The airport’s structure is managed by the operations staff through the
Base Operation Center and the Office
Current Ops (current operations).
