Talking at a geopolitics and aerospace convention in Rome, the Commander of the Italian Air Pressure’s Operational Forces stated the service is evaluating the opportunity of working F-35s from freeway strips if standard airfields are threatened.
Italy is assessing the opportunity of touchdown and working its F-35A Lightning II fifth era plane from chosen freeway sections ought to conventional air bases develop into weak in a high-threat situation. The idea was publicly acknowledged by Italian Air Pressure Lt. Gen. Silvano Frigerio, Commander of Operational Pressure, throughout remarks delivered on Feb. 4, 2026, on the “Dominio globale” aerospace and geopolitics discussion board in Rome.
In response to a report by Il Sole 24 Ore, Frigerio acknowledged that the Air Pressure is assessing “the opportunity of touchdown F-35s on highways if the sky is threatened,” highlighting an effort to strengthen operational resilience in contested environments.
No formal program or timeline has been introduced, however the normal’s remarks confirmed that Rome is analyzing dispersal of its Most worthy belongings.
Freeway strip operations aren’t new. As we frequently defined right here at The Aviationist, in the course of the Chilly Battle, a number of air forces on each NATO and Warsaw Pact facet, particularly these within the Central and Nordics areas, ready and exercised using straight stretches of motorway as auxiliary runways in case main air bases had been attacked. A then NATO companion and now full member, Sweden, institutionalized the idea routinely training street landings with its fighter fleet. Different European nations developed comparable contingency plans, although few maintained the idea at excessive readiness within the post-Chilly Battle period.
Frigerio’s feedback counsel that the Italian Air Pressure is contemplating this strategy in gentle of the evolving menace surroundings. Whereas some tactical squadrons geared up with the G-91R /Y might function from street and unprepared strips (and, in some instances, particular sections of the freeway system had been recognized for such function), no workout routines have ever been carried out.
Freeway operations in Italy
Italy’s geographic place within the Central Mediterranean offers it each strategic depth and publicity. As with all the opposite nations, its fundamental air bases are very well-known and mapped. In a high-end battle situation, runway denial would seemingly be among the many first aims of an adversary, together with the plane themselves, contemplating some airfields aren’t geared up with hardened shelters making them weak not solely to missiles but additionally to drones.
The underlying logic of freeway operations is sort of easy: dispersal complicates enemy focusing on. Fastened air bases, with recognized coordinates and restricted runway infrastructure, are weak to precision-guided munitions and long-range strike programs. The power to function from a number of, pre-selected freeway strips might improve survivability and protect sortie era capability: freeway operations would clearly be a method to improve survivability, preserve operational tempo and complicate adversary focusing on cycles.
Current workout routines carried out by different NATO air forces geared up with the F-35 have proven the idea may also be utilized to a fifth era platform, despite the fact that the fifth era plane, not like earlier fighters, in some instances designed with austere operations in thoughts, depends on an intensive upkeep ecosystem, superior assist tools, and a extra complicated logistics chain. Furthermore, the weapon system is extra demanding from a “information” perspective, requiring safe communications and command-and-control connectivity, which may not be simply obtainable at dispersed areas.
Floor high quality, particles administration and International Object Injury mitigation is also crucial components, particularly given the F-35’s low-observable coatings and total sensitivity. Even short-term dispersal operations, for coaching, would require vital coordination between navy authorities and civilian infrastructure operators.
That stated, the F-35’s strong touchdown gear and short-field efficiency parameters make such operations technically possible underneath managed circumstances. As defined, a number of allied air forces have already experimented with dispersed operations for his or her F-35 fleets, though little particulars have been disclosed different that the images exhibiting the plane taking off or touchdown on the general public roads.
At this stage, there is no such thing as a indication that Italy has chosen particular freeway segments. Ought to the idea advance, many issues would have to be considered earlier than shifting from analysis to execution. The Italian nationwide community is made by greater than 7,000 kilometers of motorways. A few of these are fairly busy and correct procedures for speedy closures must be established so as to enable coaching cycles for pilots and floor crews. On the identical time, such actions would require vital civil-military coordination, in addition to investments.
Subsequently evolution of this initiative will likely be price monitoring: whereas technically possible and definitely wanted, it’s not but clear how lengthy it’ll take for the Italian Ministry of Protection to safe all the required approvals, together with on the political degree, to hold out the actions required to assist the aptitude.
For now, Frigerio’s remarks in Rome provide an attention-grabbing glimpse into how the Italian Air Pressure envisions resilience and survivability in an period by which mounted infrastructure can now not be assumed secure.
As a facet word, it’s price noting that the Italian Air Pressure additionally operates the F-35B. The service considers the STOVL (Quick Take Off Vertical Touchdown) variant a vital part of a broader expeditionary system that allows the Italian Air Pressure to undertaking air energy removed from dwelling, in semi-permissive environments, from austere or naked runways usually unusable by standard plane and with restricted power safety offered by the host nation.
“In Africa there are about 100 runways which have a size between 2,800 and three,000 meters, however there are 20 occasions as many runways between 1,000 and 1,500 meters in size,” Gen. Alberto Rosso, then Chief of Employees of the Italian Air Pressure, stated in 2020 whereas addressing the media at Pantelleria in the course of the F-35B’s Expeditionary Proof of Idea. “With the ability to use brief runways permits you to multiply your potential to deploy the place wanted, in a extra handy and sooner manner, particularly nearer to the realm of operations. Having an plane able to taking off from shorter runways supplies unbelievable flexibility, even in eventualities which might be at present solely barely conceivable. In case of battle, plane capable of function from shorter runways may also be dispersed to extend their survivability.”
The F-35B is an asset able to working from brief runways. The F-35B can take off vertically however not operationally in most real-world eventualities.
