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| Aviano Air Base | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aeroporto Pagliano e Gori di Aviano | |||||||
| NearAviano,Friuli-Venezia Giulia in Italy | |||||||
.jpg) Aviano Air Base in 2025 | |||||||
  | |||||||
| Site information | |||||||
| Type | Used by the US and Italian air forces | ||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence (Ministero della Difesa) | ||||||
| Operator | Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare)US Air Force | ||||||
| Controlled by | Italy[1] | ||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
| Location | |||||||
  Aviano  Aviano  Aviano  Aviano | |||||||
| Coordinates | 46°01′53″N012°35′49″E / 46.03139°N 12.59694°E /46.03139; 12.59694 | ||||||
| Site history | |||||||
| Built | 1911 (1911) | ||||||
| In use | 1911–present (Italian Air Force) 1954–present (US Air Force) | ||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||
| Current commander | Colonel Luca Crovatti[2] | ||||||
| Garrison | 31st Fighter Wing | ||||||
| Occupants | |||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: AVB,ICAO: LIPA,WMO: 160360 | ||||||
| Elevation | 125.8 metres (413 ft)AMSL | ||||||
| |||||||
| Source: SkyVector Aeronautical Charts[3] | |||||||
Aviano Air Base (IATA:AVB,ICAO:LIPA) (Italian:Base aerea di Aviano) is a base in northeasternItaly, in theFriuli-Venezia Giuliaregion. It is located in theAviano municipality, at the foot of theCarnic Pre-Alps orSouthern Carnic Alps, about 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) fromPordenone.
TheItalian Air Force has ownership, and administrative and military control of the base.[1] It hosts theU.S. Air Force's31st Fighter Wing and pernuclear sharing is one of six active air bases in five European countries withB61 nuclear bombs in undergroundWS3 Weapon Storage and Security System inside aircraft shelters.[4]
The 31st Fighter Wing is the only U.S. fighter wing south of the Alps.[5] The 31st Fighter Wing is made up of twoGeneral Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter squadrons, the555th Fighter Squadron and the510th Fighter Squadron, allowing it to fly both attack and defensive missions.
Aviano Air Base was established by the Italian government in 1911 as the first airport in Italy, and was later used as training base for Italian pilots and construction facility for aircraft parts. DuringWorld War I, Italy used the airfield in missions against theAustro-Hungarian andGerman armies. At that time, two Italian aviators, CaptainMaurizio Pagliano and LieutenantLuigi Gori, conducted an unauthorized and unsuccessful but heroic air raid on the Austro-Hungarian naval yards inPula, in what is nowCroatia. In their honor, the base's name was changed toAeroporto Pagliano e Gori in 1919. During the war the airfield was also overrun by the Austro-German army between November 1917 and November 1918. After World War I, the airfield was again used as a training base.
DuringWorld War II, both theItalian Air Force and theGermanLuftwaffe flew missions from Aeroporto Pagliano e Gori.British forces captured the base in 1945; they conducted air operations there until 1947, when the Italian Air Force resumed operational use of the airport.
The USAF first arrived in Aviano in the winter of 1954. The 40th Tactical Group was created 1 April 1966. The1976 earthquake caused no damage.
As part of the most extensive restructuring since the Air Force became a separate service,Tactical Air Command was inactivated andAir Combat Command was activated and the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing was redesignated to its current name, the 31st Fighter Wing.[6]
To avoid losing the wing's heritage and history as the highest scoringArmy Air Force unit in theMediterranean Theater in WWII, the impressive combat record in theVietnam War and a number of significant firsts they produced in the early years of the Air Force, the 31st Fighter Wing was chosen to move rather than fade into obscurity. On 1 April 1994, the 31st Fighter Wing inactivated atHomestead AFB and subsequently activated at Aviano Air Base, Italy, in place of the401st Fighter Wing.[7]
The 31st Fighter Wing received two new squadrons at that time, the555th and510th Fighter Squadrons, along with their Block-40 F-16s. The wing immediately became involved with events inBosnia in May 1994 as part ofOperation Deny Flight. In June 1995, a massive search and rescue operation took place to extract CaptainScott O'Grady of the 555th Fighter Squadron who was shot down over Bosnian-Serb controlled territory in Bosnia. AU.S. Marine CorpsCH-53 picked him up after he evaded capture for six days.[8]
In August and September,Operation Deliberate Force began and the 31st Fighter Wing conducted air strikes against Bosnian Serbs to give the Muslim forces an upper hand in the conflict. Peacekeeping operations continued in the Balkans through the end of 2004, when theEuropean Union assumed responsibility for the region.[9]
In 1999, U.S. Air Forces in Europe activated the 31st Air Expeditionary Wing-Noble Anvil at Aviano forOperation Allied Force in Kosovo, which was not authorized by theUN Security Council. Assigned under a joint task force, the 31st Air Expeditionary Wing flew from Aviano and joined NATO allies in a 78-day air campaign against theFederal Republic of Yugoslavia. From 24 March to 10 June 1999, the 31st Air Expeditionary Wing, the largest expeditionary wing in Air Force history flew nearly 9,000 combat sorties and accumulated almost 40,000 hours of combat service over the skies of Kosovo, Serbia and the rest of the Balkans in support of NATO operations. The wing accomplished much during OAF as the two permanently assigned flying squadrons, the 510th and 555th, flew more than 2,400 combined sorties and more than 10,000 combat hours.[10]
In 2000, the wing began deployments in support of theExpeditionary Air Force. From March to September 2000, the 510th and 555th Fighter Squadrons conducted back-to-back deployments toAhmad al-Jaber AB,Kuwait, in support ofOperation Southern Watch. While at Al Jaber, the squadrons flew more than 400 combat sorties.
From June through December 2001, the fighter squadrons deployedcombat search and rescue capabilities three times and helped enforce theno-fly zone over Iraq.
From August to December 2002, the 510th Fighter Squadron and603rd Air Control Squadron returned to Southwest Asia. The two squadrons supportedOperation Enduring Freedom.
Simultaneously, the 555th deployed personnel and aircraft toDecimomannu Air Base,Sardinia, while the runway at Aviano was closed for repairs.
The wing's support ofOperation Iraqi Freedom began in late 2003. Aviano served as the launch point for airborne/air-land insertion of airborne forces opening a second front in northern Iraq. During that time, the wing secured, bedded and fed more than 2,300Army and Air Force personnel. The operation, the largest airborne operation since 1989, constituted 62 missions, transporting 2,146 passengers and 2,433.7 tons of cargo.
Since the beginning of combat operations in Iraq, forces from the wing have been on regular combat rotations into the region. In late 2003, the wing's603rd Air Control Squadron became the first unit from the wing to deploy to Iraq. They also relocated their entire operation fromBaghdad International Airport toBalad Air Base. Under combat conditions, the squadron transferred $73 million in equipment and more than 100 personnel with 20 convoys. On 10 April 2004, insurgents launched a mortar attack on Balad, killingAirman 1st Class Antoine Holt and injuring two other 603rd Air Control Squadron members. Airman Holt's death constituted the 31st Fighter Wing's first combat fatality since the Vietnam War.
The 31st Fighter Wing continued deploying forces in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, with more than one-third of the wing deploying to support operations each year from 2003 to 2007.
In 2007, the 555th Fighter Squadron deployed toKunsan Air Base in theRepublic of Korea.
Since arriving at Aviano, the wing has also participated in numerous training exercises with international partners, including training deployments toLatvia, theCzech Republic,Romania,Bulgaria,Spain,Slovenia andPoland.
In March 2011, the 31st Fighter Wing played a major role in theUnited Nations' response to the crisis inLibya, known asOperation Odyssey Dawn, in enforcing no-fly zone.[11] The wing hosted four flying units and more than 1,350 personnel during the 15-day operation, 17 to 31 March. It worked around the clock to launch 2,250 flying operations out of Aviano Air Base. As Operation Odyssey Dawn came to an end on 31 March, so beganOperation Unified Protector, with NATO taking the lead until the operation's conclusion 31 October of that year.[7]
Aviano F-16s again returned to the skies over Libya in June 2014. Due to significant fighting inTripoli during the2014 Libyan conflict the U.S embassy was evacuated. During a five-hournon-combatant evacuation operation, three F-16s launched from Aviano guarded the evacuation of American citizens as embassy staff andU.S Marines convoyd overland from Tripoli intoTunisia.[12][13]
In the Cavalese cable car disaster, on 3 February 1998, a U.S. Marine CorpsEA-6B Prowler jet flying too low on a training exercise from Aviano Air Base severed acable car's cable over theAlps atCavalese, Italy, causing 20 deaths.[14]
On 4 November 2009, the conviction by an Italian court of 22CIA agents, aU.S. Air Force colonel and two ItalianSISMI secret agents confirmed the role of the Aviano Air Base in the kidnapping, on 17 February 2003, ofHassan Mustafa Osama Nasr, in the so-called "extraordinary rendition" program.[15] The man, abducted inMilan by CIA agents, was taken to Aviano Air Base for interrogation before being transported viaRamstein Air Base inGermany toAlexandria,Egypt, and turned over to the custody of Egypt'sState Security Intelligence.[15][16][17]
_at_Aviano_Air_Base%2c_Italy%2c_11_December_2023_(231211-F-ZJ681-1020).JPG)
The31st Fighter Wing is made up of four groups, each consisting of several squadrons.
The 31st Operations Group ensures the combat readiness of two F-16CG squadrons, one air control squadron, and one operational support squadron conducting and supporting worldwide air operations. The group preparesfighter pilots, controllers, and support personnel to execute U.S. and NATO war plans and contingency operations. It trains, equips, plans, and provides weather, intelligence, standardization/evaluation, andcommand and control sustaining global flying operations.[18]
The 31st Maintenance Group provides peacetime and combat maintenance and munitions control, and executive support for the 31st Fighter Wing, geographically separated units under the command and control of the wing, and units gained during advanced stages of readiness. The 31st MXG also responds to humanitarian and contingency logistics support requirements as directed by theJoint Chiefs of Staff through HeadquartersU.S. Air Forces Europe to locations in Europe, Africa, and Southwest Asia.[19]
The 31st Mission Support Group's goal is to provide infrastructure and service to support a premiere combat capability and quality of life to the 31st Fighter Wing, Aviano community and multiple geographically separated units.[20]
The 31st Medical Group supports the readiness of 31st Fighter Wing and associated units throughout the Southern Region, ensuring the health of its community by providing optimal patient-focused medical care from internal, Department of Defense and Host Nation resources. The unit employs medical resources and preventive initiatives to ensure airmen remain mission ready to support the Expeditionary Air Force, U.S. and NATO objectives worldwide.[21]
As of 2023, Aviano is one of six active air bases in five European countries withB61 nuclear bombs in undergroundWS3 Weapon Storage and Security System inside aircraft shelters;Ramstein Air Base has a vault but no nuclear weapons present andRAF Lakenheath s bunkers were being modernized.[22]
Flying and notable non-flying units based at Aviano Air Base.[23][24]
United States Air Force[edit]United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA)
| Italian Air Force[edit]
|
TheDepartment of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) operates schools for children who are dependents of US military personnel. Aviano Elementary School andAviano Middle High School are the two DoDEA schools on the property.[25]
Pest extermination is the responsibility of the 31st Civil Engineer Squadron.[26]
Air bases with US nuclear weapon vaults in Europe:
Some of this text in an early version of this article was taken from pages on theAviano Air Base website, which as a work of the U.S. Government is presumed to be apublic domain resource. That information was supplemented by:
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 United States Air Force Mediterranean Bases | |||||
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