[quote][b][url=/v3/forum/europe-14/topic/aeronautica-militare-italiana-italie-180/?post=25306#post-25306]foxkilo02[/url] a dit le 24/09/2008 à 21:22 :[/b]

The Italian government said it would send four Tornado aircraft to Afghanistan.
[quote]Defense Minister Ignazio La Russa said the aircraft would be used for surveillance missions and not for bombing missions.

"[b]The planes will obviously not be used for bombing purposes, but in observation operations[/b], the same way German Tornadoes are being used there," La Russa said.

La Russa had said earlier this year that the deployment of the aircraft could be shelved due to budget shortfalls.

Italy's military chief of staff, Gen. Vincenzo Camporini, said the aircraft could now be operational in Afghanistan by mid-October. Italian wire agency ANSA reported that the government had freed up 13 million euros ($18.9 million) to cover the deployment for the remainder of 2008.[/quote]
[url=http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=3738743&c=AIR&s=EUR]Source[/url][/quote]