Military aviation of Italy
The Italian LWL is equipped with 48 A129 Mangusta attack helicopters, including 16 A129C (pictured) and 32 A129D. In 2025-2030, they should be replaced by 48 AW249s.
Commander-in-Chief of the Italian Land Forces - General Staff of the Land Forces - Stato Maggiore del Eserscito, based in Rome, Commander of the Land Forces - General of the Army Pietro Serino. The headquarters is located in the Palazzo Esercito complex on the northwest side of Rome Termini's main station, about 1,5 kilometers from Air Force Command on the east side of the station. The task of the General Staff of the Ground Forces is to organize, equip, train and maintain combat readiness of the troops subordinate to them, as well as programming their development and determining the need for infrastructure, people and equipment. The staff is managed by the Centro Nazionale Amministrativo dell'Esercito (CNAEsercito), located in Rome. The activities of the General Staff of the Ground Forces are provided by the transport and security regiment of the 11th transport regiment "Flaminia".
The subordinate authorities include the Operational Command of the Ground Forces - Comando delle Forze Operative Terrestri - Comando Operativo Esercito (COMFOTER COE), headed by General of the Army Giovanni Fungo. This command is responsible for the comprehensive training of the Ground Forces, for the organization of training and exercises, as well as for the verification and certification of units. Directly under this command are the Land Forces Air Force Command - Comando Aviazione dell'Esercito (AVES), located in Viterbo (about 60 km northwest of Rome), and the Special Operations Command - Comando delle Forze Speciali dell'Esercito (COMFOSE). in Pisa.
The modernized A129D Mangusta helicopter is adapted, among other things, for transporting Spike-ER anti-tank missiles and auxiliary tanks.
The main forces of the Italian Land Forces are divided into two territorial operational commands and several specialized ones. Comando Forze Operative Nord (COMFOP NORD) under Territorial Command "North" in Padua is subordinate to the division "Vittorio Veneto" headquartered in Florence. It is a mixed division with mechanized and light units. Its mechanized element is the armored brigade 132ª Brigata Corazzata “Ariete”, consisting of two battalions of Ariete tanks, a motorized infantry battalion on tracked Dardo infantry fighting vehicles, a reconnaissance battalion with Centauro wheeled fire support vehicles, a squadron of self-propelled artillery installations with 2000 called 155 mm howitzers. The "middle" element of the division is the cavalry brigade Brigata di Cavalleria "Pozzuolo del Friuli" from Girisia. It consists of a reconnaissance battalion with Centauro fire support vehicles, an airborne infantry battalion with Lince light multi-purpose all-terrain vehicles, a marine battalion with AAV-7A1 tracked armored personnel carriers and an artillery squadron with 70-mm FH155 towed howitzers. Finally, the light element of the division is the parachute brigade Brigata Paracadutisti "Folgore" from Livorno, consisting of three parachute battalions and a squadron of 120 mm mortars, and the air cavalry brigade Brigata Aeromobile "Friuli". In addition to the Vittorio Veneto Division, the headquarters consists of three administrative-territorial headquarters and independent security units.
Command "South" - Comando Forze Operative Sud (COMFOP SUD) is based in Naples. It includes, in addition to security units, the Divisione "Acqui" unit, headquartered in Capua, south of Rome. This is a division, which consists of five brigades, adapted both to strengthen the security forces in the country and to deploy forces and assets for stabilization and peacekeeping missions abroad. The division consists of: Brigata Meccanizzata "Granatieri di Sardegna" mechanized brigade with command in Rome (battalion of fire support vehicles Centauro, battalion of mechanized infantry Dardo, mechanized battalion on multi-purpose all-terrain vehicles Lince, mechanized brigade Meccanized) Aosta "from Messina, Sicily (three battalions per wheeled Freccia infantry fighting vehicles, a battalion of Centauro fire support vehicles, a squadron of 70 mm FH155 towed howitzers), a mechanized brigade Brigata Meccanizzata “Pinerolo” from “Barca” identical structure, a brigade Brigata Meccanizzed “Sassari” from Sassari, Sardinia with three infantry battalions on multi-purpose vehicles off-road Lince, but planned to be converted into wheeled Freccia infantry fighting vehicles with the same structure as the two previously mentioned and the mechanized brigade Brigata Bersaglieri “Garibaldi” from Caserta near Naples, has, including the Ariete tank battalion, two mechanized battalions on infantry fighting vehicles "Dardo" and a 2000-mm artillery squadron of self-propelled howitzers PzH 155.
