The airbase in Sicily will become the first location outside the U.S. for international F-35 pilot training, as Italy further consolidates its position as a global leader in advanced training.
On Sept. 8, 2025, for the first time, ten U.S. Air Force student pilots began the “Multiphase Jet Training” course at Decimomannu Air Base, Sardinia, home of the International Flight Training School (IFTS). The program, lasting about nine months, will lead to the award of military pilot wings on the T-346A (the Italian Air Force designation for the Leonardo M-346 Master).
The course stems from an agreement signed on Aug. 21 between the Italian Air Force and the U.S. Air Force that marks a new milestone in the cooperation between Italy and the United States, expanding the reach of the IFTS project launched as a strategic partnership between the Italian Air Force and Leonardo aerospace company.
As explained in detail here at The Aviationist, the IFTS, combines real and simulated training on the M-346/T-346A advanced jet trainer, preparing future pilots for the most complex operational scenarios. Thanks to this integrated training system, the school has become a unique global reference point, attracting students and instructors from an increasing number of nations. Alongside Italy and the U.S., pilots from Saudi Arabia, Austria, Canada, Japan, Greece, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Qatar, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, the UK, and Hungary already train or instruct at the school.
With cutting-edge facilities and a curriculum tailored to the demands of 4th and 5th generation aircraft such as the Eurofighter Typhoon and the F-35, the IFTS continues to grow as a benchmark for advanced fighter pilot training.
Trapani selected for the international F-35 school
Against this backdrop, on Sept. 12, 2025, Nino Minardo, Chairman of the Defense Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, confirmed to ANSA that Trapani-Birgi Air Base in Sicily will host the new global training center for F-35 pilots. The facility will serve as the twin of the one already operating at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, in the United States.
The confirmation follows remarks made in July 2025 by Defence Minister Guido Crosetto at Decimomannu. At the time, Crosetto announced that Sicily would become the first location outside the U.S. where F-35 pilots will be trained, while also stressing Italy’s unique role as the only nation assembling the 5th generation fighter of all variants for international partners outside the U.S. at the F-35 Final Assembly and Check-Out (FACO) facility at Cameri, in northwestern Italy.
“The future is built not by limiting ourselves to defence, but by making defence a social, economic and technological innovation engine. And this is an example of that,” Crosetto explained.
In July, Crosetto and President Sergio Mattarella also attended a ceremony at Decimomannu where 16 new pilots received their wings, part of a class of 67 from Italy and partner nations. Since its opening in 2022, the IFTS has trained 140 fighter pilots, many of whom have gone on to advanced courses in Sardinia.
The establishment of the F-35 training hub at Trapani-Birgi builds on the IFTS model and positions Italy at the heart of the global F-35 enterprise.
The selection of Trapani is particularly interesting: the airport in northwestern Sicily is a joint civil and military airfield, currently home to the 37° Stormo (Wing) of the Italian Air Force, equipped with Eurofighter Typhoon jets. This means that the international F-35 school, twin to Luke Air Force Base, will share runways and infrastructure with a civilian airport, something quite unique.
Back in 2023, during a media briefing hosted by Lockheed Martin in Rome as part of the celebrations for the Centenary of the Italian Air Force, Jonathan Hoyle, Chief Executive Europe, and Randy Howard, Vice President of Global Pursuits, revealed that the Italian Air Force was planning to add a third F-35 base in addition to Ghedi and Amendola: Decimomannu, in Sardinia.
The new base at “Deci” had in fact been hinted at by one of the exhibition panels located next to the Lightning mock-up on display at the “Air Force Experience.” As we reported back then, the “Fast Facts” board had the text “Future Base” written on Decimomannu Air Base. It is not clear whether a third Italian base is still planned there; what is official now is that the F-35 school will be established at Trapani, an airfield that will likely soon be readied to accommodate the 5th generation aircraft and its dedicated training facilities.
