Established the Air Sahel Task Group within MISIN, Bilateral support mission in the Republic of Niger
Il Task Group, placed directly under the Commander of MISIN, it will allow the mission to expand its operational and logistical capabilities within the Sahel.
The newly formed Task Group operates from the Aérienne Base 101 of Niamey with the aircraftC-27J, medium cargo particularly versatile and flexible in use and able to effectively carry out the various tactical transport missions, also operating from semi-prepared or deteriorated slopes, as well as paratroopers' aviation missions, essential for the training of Nigerian Security Forces personnel, carried out by the MISIN Mobile Training Teams.
The activities of the Task Group are integrated with those of the assets of the Command Forces for Mobility and Support of the Air Force which guarantee the Sahelian Operations Theater their Airlift Transportation capabilities, or the potential for transporting personnel, materials and means wherever they are needed, in Italy and abroad, with an ability to intervene in all conditions and with minimum notice, even in hostile territories.
In particular, the 46th Air Brigade uses its aircraftC-130J e C-130J-30, capable of operating even from semi-prepared and small-sized slopes, while the 14 ° Stormo offers the large load capacity of materials and passengers of theKC-767A Tanks / Transport. The Air Force transport aircraft make it possible to create and sustain over time that network of air connections that acts as a trait d’union with the operational theaters.
Also, the Air Riflemen of the 9th and 16th Wing, dependent on1Special Operations Air Brigadeand fromCFMS, Command Forces for Mobility and Support, operate on board the aircraft of the Italian Air Force, garantendo l’Air Marshall Security Service, or the set of measures and procedures aimed at minimizing the vulnerability of staff, of means and operations, with a strict aeronautical connotation, with respect to any threat and in all circumstances; this in order to preserve the freedom of action and the operational efficiency of the forces in the field.
Since September 2018, MISIN operates under a bilateral agreement between Italy and Niger, consistent with the multinational effort aimed at stabilizing the Sahel. With its Mobile Training Teams, made up of staff fromItalian army, dell’Air force, of theCarabinieri and ofSpecial forces, the Italian mission guarantees the increase of Nigerian capabilities in combating the phenomenon of illegal trafficking and threats to security, in border surveillance and territorial control.
TheWILL YOU it's amission bilateral aimed at supporting the development of the Security Forces of the Republic of Niger (with a geographical area of intervention also extended to Mauritania, Nigeria e Benin) for the increase in capacity aimed at combating the phenomenon of illegal trafficking and security threats, as part of a joint European and US effort to stabilize the Sahel area. MISIN has formed, to date, about 6.500 military of the Nigerian Defense and Security Forces.
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Text and photos: Ministry of Defence
