International Flight Training School: Phase 4 training, Italian style
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The 61st Wing is the Italian Air Force training unit, which three squadrons, 212, 213 and 214, are responsible for the build-up of the service military pilots, from Phase 2 to Phase 4, Phase 1 being the responsibility of the 70th Wing. The 212 IFTS Squadron is the one responsible for the high-tier part of the syllabus, the one that will bring young student pilots to their future fighter aircraft through the Operational Conversion Unit
The aircraft employed by 212 Squadron at Decimomannu is the M-346/T-346A, the twin-engine lead-in fighter trainer (LIFT) designed by an Aermacchi design team led by Massimo Lucchesini, which maiden flight took place on July 15th, 2004; initially developed in cooperation with Russian Yakovlev, in 1999 the two projects split and while maintaining the general aerodynamics of the initial project, what is now the M-346 is a wholly new machine.
The M-346 is in service or on order by eight nations, for a total of 122 aircraft, the main user being the Israeli Air Force. To these aircraft we must add four more M-346, belonging to Leonardo, which are part of the IFTS fleet.
In the Italian Air Force build-up scheme, a candidate pilot starts its career on the SF-260EA, T-260B in Air Force wording, a piston engine aircraft used for Phase 1 screening and basic training at the 70th Wing based in Latina.
Phase 2 lasts 7.5 months and is done at Lecce-Galatina [1], at 214 Squadron, at the end of which student pilots are selected for three different roles, fast jet, multi-engine, or helicopters. Fast jet pilots follow the 10-months Phase 3 on the same base, courtesy 213 Squadron. Both squadrons in Lecce are currently equipped with MB-339s/T-339, however these are being replaced with the M-345/T-345; the phase-in of the new trainer took place on June 12th, 2025, at the 61st Wing [2].
At the end of Phase 3 student pilots receive their military pilot wings, then move to Decimomannu for the last training phase before joining the Operational Conversion Unit where they will fly the fighter with which they will start their operational pilot career.
“Our task is to train next generation fighter pilots for 4th and 5th generation aircraft,” LTC Marcello d’Ippolito, 212 Squadron commanding officer, a Eurofighter pilot, tells EDR On-Line; “We provide advanced flight training before operational conversion courses. We train the students in a multi-role environment and in complex scenarios, thanks to the T-346A technology.”
One of the key elements of the IFTS is the instructor pilot’s body. This is quite unique as in Decimomannu we find a multinational mix of military and civilian instructors. Over 40 instructor pilots are available at the IFTS, 40% military and 60% civilian. The Italian Air Force is providing the majority of military instructors; “the other military instructors come from partner nations Air Forces, we train them for a year, we transition them on the T-346A, and then they become part of the IFTS. As for civilian instructor pilots, those who wear a blue flight suit, these are provided by ACS (Aeronautical Consulting & Solutions) [3]. They are all former military pilots who left the service no more than four years earlier; they are selected by us, trained by us, and then join the training system,” LTC d’Ippolito explains. Among civilian instructors, not all are flight instructors, some of them operating only simulators [4].
Beside Italian Air Force instructors, 11 more nations are providing flight/simulator instructors; in alphabetic order, Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Singapore, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. It is to note that some of those nations are not sending their pilots to the IFTS, these instructors being civilian, while other nations are using the M-346 in their flight schools, such as Greece and Singapore.
The Italian Air Force has the lead on training, as it establishes the syllabus, is responsible for standardisation, tests, and exams, as well as for flight and ground training.
The training concept is based on a live-virtual-constructive (LVC) ecosystem that includes the T-346A, simulators of different levels, and computer-generated injections, which together allow training in realistic and complex scenarios. “We use the virtual part for knowledge and to improve the abilities and skills, the constructive part for practice, and the fusion of those with real flight to validate everything we have done up to that moment,” LTC d’Ippolito explains, underlining that no classified issues are part of the course, which allows to accept student pilots from all friendly nations.
How is the course organized? “The first part is machine transition, then qualification. Once the qualification is done, we review their military pilot skills, so formation flying, fighter curves, basic exercises that we expect a military pilot is able to do. They all do the same missions, but there are those who must work a little more and those who are already ready,” the 212 Squadron commander underlines. While pilots belonging to NATO countries follow a standardised training syllabus, so their skills at the end of Phase 3 are very similar, this is not necessarily true for other nations pilots, the IFTS providing therefore a complementary training to ensure that at the start of Phase 4 all participants are at the same level.
The first month or so sees student pilots following ground school, mostly exploiting CBT, computer-based training, plus frontal lessons with the instructors. At the end of every day the instructor is available to clarify any doubt. The next step is the SBT, or Simulator Based Training, which takes place on a more comprehensive simulation tool; this works on Windows and has an 8K resolution full touch screen. The SBT is used for lessons, with an instructor coaching the students. However, the latter have each his or her individual password and can access the SBT 24/7, log in, and go through preloaded lessons or free flight. Instructors can retrieve those activities and monitor what they have done and their results. The aforementioned systems are not included in the LVC training system.
The next step sees two types of simulators, both networked with actual aircraft and computer-generated assets. In fact, the two are identical, except for the dome; the Part Task Trainer, PTT in short, has a 270° dome, while the Full Mission Simulator, FMS, has a 360° dome.
Then comes of course the aircraft, all pilots following an initial conversion course on the T-346A. As a reminder, the Leonardo trainer is a twin-jet engine capable to reach a maximum level speed of 590 KTAS, with a limit speed of Mach 1.15. Its considerable specific excess power ensures a climb rate of 22,000 ft/min at sea level, while its structure can accept a positive load factor of +8 g and a negative one of -3 g, maximum sustained turn rate at 15,000 ft being 12.5°/s, with a 30° maximum angle of attack. The aircraft is not fitted with a radar; however, its Embedded Tactical Training Simulation (ETTS) allows not only to emulate a complete suite of sensors, countermeasures and armaments, but also to generate a virtual tactical scenario, simulating air, naval and ground forces, hostile or friendly, which interacts in real time with the aircraft during the execution of training missions.
The syllabus is based on a core element, made of several air-to-air and air-to-ground modules, which lead the student pilot to reach the qualification. Advanced additional modules are also available.
The air-to-air segment is based on two main modules, basic fighter manoeuvres and advanced combat manoeuvres, each considering offensive, defensive and high aspect drills. The air-to-ground segment includes low-level flight, tactical low-level, basic and advanced tactical air-to-ground, precision guided munitions, close air support, and offensive counter-air air-to-ground. At the end of the core syllabus the student pilot will have flown an average of 64 missions on the T-346A and 75 missions on the simulators, in increasingly complex missions that include a higher number of aircraft and an increasingly hostile environment.
When required, a set of additional modules is available, nations being able to pick-up those they consider key for increasing their pilots’ capacities to reach maximum efficiency during the OCU phase. The advanced air-to-air segment includes radar-to-radar, beyond visual range, quick-reaction alert (how to manage a no-flight zone), defensive counter-air, active defensive counter-air, slow mover interceptor, and offensive counter-air air-to-air. Other modules are available such as air-to-ground range, exploiting the Capo Frasca range where inert bombs are dropped, air-to-air refuelling, night vision goggles, and emergency training. All modules listed here include both simulated and live activities, in increasingly demanding conditions.
Usually nations buy the full package, however some air forces do not apply for some of the advanced modules, as they do not have one of those capabilities, say for example air refuelling. It is to note that the ETTS allows only to “see” on the radar screen other T-346A, either in flight or virtual, that are part of the LVC ecosystem, however should other types of aircraft fly with the ACMI pod installed, a Eurofighter Typhoon for example, as the pod can be tuned onto the LVC frequencies these will become part of the scenario.
The end state, which is the combat-ready pilot, changes over time, as the skills needed to survive and fight in a war scenario change according to technology, threat, enemy, and so on. As the IFTS is the link between the training segment and the OCU, the output of the Decimomannu school must be updated according to the evolving times. “To do so, we have regular meetings with Italian Air Force operational conversion units, in Grosseto with the 4th Wing/20 OCU Squadron for the Eurofighter, and with 156 Squadron at Luke AFB, USA, for the F-35, to which our graduated pilots are being assigned; these meetings usually last one week and we discuss all the issues that might arise, among which new tactics based on lessons learned,” the 212 Squadron commander told EDR On-Line. A process that is also done with the lower-level training units, those dealing with Phase 3, and the entry in service of the M-345 will certainly bring some modification, the new aircraft being definitely a step ahead compared to the T-339 in use until now, especially from the avionics and simulation standpoint.
Balancing the different phases of the training syllabus is not easy task. “The limit is not the system; it is the attendee. We must never forget that we deal with newly trained pilots, and they need to acquire experience and airmanship, something that cannot be done overnight. If we have to do more things, we need to increase time, and if we download some training into previous phases, to concentrate on advanced skills, we risk forgetting the basics, which are those that save the pilot’s life,” LTC d’Ippolito states.
Around 140 photos of qualified pilots from 11 different countries, issued from the IFTS since it started its activities at Decimomannu, can be seen in the main hall of the GBTS building. Number 200 will be reached soon. With the school now running full speed, and with the output increase foreseen for next year, currently the IFTS has an 80 pilots per year capacity, the wall will soon not be sufficient to host all student pilots who left the Sardinian base to join their assigned OCUs.
[1] Some student pilots are sent to the USAF 80th Flying Training Wing, better known as Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training (ENJJPT), at Sheppard AFB, Texas, or at the Hellenic Air Force 120th Flying Training Wing in Kalamata, Greece, both using the Beechcraft T-6 Texan II turboprop. Since 2025, some Italian Air Force student pilots are being sent to the Qatar Emiri Air Force’s 31 Squadron stationed on the at Al Udeid Airbase, south-west of Doha, where they fly the Pilatus PC-21.
[2] 214 Squadron has been the first to receive the M-345, and will be quickly followed by 213 Squadron, to ensure that those who start Phase 2 with the new aircraft will find the same trainer in Phase 3.
[3] Based in Florence, ACS was created in 2008 and provides specialized products, services, and consultancy in the field of military flight training, engineering support, as well as in the development of innovative projects in support of Armed Forces and Aeronautical Industries.
[4] These include some young people who applied to become simulator instructors, or former fighter pilots who were declared unfit for fast jet flight but are very experienced in flight and tactics.
Photos by P. Valpolini
