Arditi Incursori (Kingdom of Italy)
| Arditi Incursori | |
|---|---|
| Arditi Incursori | |
 Arditi Incursori emblem | |
| Active | 1993–present (Current form) |
| Country |  Kingdom of Italy |
| Branch |  Italian National Royal Navy |
| Type | Special Forces |
| Role | Search and rescue Special operations Direct action |
| Garrison/HQ | Porto Venere (HQ) |
| Motto(s) | "E Fluctibus irruit in hostem" (From the sea we assault the enemy) |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Rear Admiral Giuseppe Bittazzo |
| Insignia | |
| Arditi Incursori Parachutist badge |  |
The Arditi Incursori is the Italian Navy's special forces unit. The Arditi Incursori are one of the seven major Navy commands, along with the Naval Squadron and other important bodies.
History
Italy was the first nation to use frogmen and human torpedoes. The Royal Italian Navy's Naval Assault Divisions is considered to be the precursor of modern Naval Special Forces. Their record can be traced back to World War I and the operation against the Austrian-Hungarian Battleship Viribus Unitis in Pula Harbour in 1918. Italy's frogman group originated in 1938 as the 1a Flottiglia Mezzi d'Assalto (1st Flotilla Assault Vehicles), which was reformed in 1940 as the Decima Flottiglia MAS (10th Flotilla Assault Vehicles, X MAS).
In African War famous operations were Suda Bay, Alexandria, Gibraltar, and Malta. After the African War the X MAS was subdivided into two separate units (MARIASSALTO, raiders and MARICENTSUB, divers) and a special support unit framed directly under the Commander-in-chief of the Naval forces. In 1986 the X MAS was reformed under the name of Divers and Raiders Command (Comando Sommozzatori e Incursori, COM.SOM.IN.). In 1993 the special support naval unit was merged into the COM.SOM.IN. which, in turn, was renamed simply Arditi Incursori.
The Arditi Incursori are currently based in three detachments near the Gulf of La Spezia in the Liguria region of north-west Italy. In keeping with its traditions, the command has long been known for its acquisition and use of unconventional weapons and small arms, such as the Armalite AR-10.
Mission
The principal roles of the Arditi Incursori are:
- Special reconnaissance, including information reporting and target acquisition;
- Direct action, including direction of air strikes, artillery and naval gunfire, designation for precision guided munitions, use of integral weapons and demolitions;
- Support and influence, including overseas training tasks.
The Arditi Incursori also provide immediate response military counter terrorism and maritime counter terrorism (MCT) teams.
Operational capabilities
The operational capabilities of the Arditi Incursori and the 10th Arditi Regiment "Col Moschin" are broadly similar. However, the Arditi Incursori (being the principal Italian National Royal Navy contribution to Italian special forces) has the additional training and equipment required to lead in the maritime, amphibious and riverine environments. Both units come under the operational command of Joint Command for Operations of Special Forces (COFS) and undergo an identical selection process. They enjoy significant interoperability in training and on operations.
The Arditi Incursori's four Incursori Companies, 201st, 202nd, 203rd and 204th, are specialised for a specific environment but are configured for general operations, and rotate through the maritime counter terrorism role. The Arditi Incursori also operates on land, with recent operations in East Africa and in North Africa. Their main tasks include intelligence gathering, counter-terrorism operations (surveillance or offensive action), sabotage and the disruption of enemy infrastructure, capture of specific individuals, close protection of senior politicians and military personnel, plus reconnaissance and direct action in foreign territory.
Organisation
The Arditi Incursori are organised on a Command, three Groups and a Flotilla:
- Command;
- Arditi Incursori Group (Gruppo Arditi Incursori - G.A.I.);
- Arditi Divers Group (Gruppo Arditi Sommozzatori - G.A.S.);
- Arditi Schools Group (Gruppo Scuole Arditi - G.S.A.);
- 10th Torpedo-armed motorboats Flottilla (X Flottiglia Motoscafi Armati Siluranti, X MAS);
- Autonomous Technical Section (Sezione Tecnica Autonoma - S.T.A.).
The Command provides the services and maintenance needed for the groups to fulfill their missions. Part of the Command is the Research Office, which researches, develops and procures the materials and means needed by the operational groups.
Arditi Incursori Group
The Arditi Incursori Group (Gruppo Arditi Incursori - G.A.I.) is a special forces unit and focuses on maritime special operations. The G.A.I. have four specific assignments:
- 201st Company: Attacks on naval and merchant ships while in port or at sea using a multitude of different weapons systems.
- 202nd Company: Attacks on port or coastal civilian and military installations and infrastructure up to 400 km from the coast.
- 203rd Company: Counter-terrorism operations especially on ships and dedicated to the recovery of hostages.
- 204th Company: Infiltration and long-term stays in hostile territory for reconnaissance or long-range naval targeting missions.
Raiders wear a green beret and are largely drawn from the ranks of the Navy's San Marco Marine Brigade.
Arditi Divers Group
The Arditi Divers Group (Gruppo Arditi Sommozzatori - G.A.S.) specialises in scuba diving with oxygen, air and special equipment. Diver detachments usually operate from the navy's minesweepers but also support the Arditi Incursori Group. They also specialise in rescuing personnel from stricken ships and submarines and assist the civil authorities in maritime rescue operations. Divers wear a medium blue beret.
Schools Group
The Arditi Schools Group (Gruppo Scuole Arditi - G.S.A.) consists of:
- Divers School;
- Raiders School
- Underwater and Hyperbaric Medicine School.
X MAS
The 10th Torpedo-armed motorboats Flottilla (X Flottiglia Motoscafi Armati Siluranti, X M.A.S.) supports and moves the raiders and the divers, with the aid of eleven ships:
- Daga-class diving support vessels: "Coltello" and "Daga";
- Tirapugni-class high-speed patrol boats: "Tirapugni" and "Rostro";
- Nibbio-class missile hydrofoil patrol boats: "Nibbio", "Sparviero", "Falcone", "Grifone", "Gheppio", "Astore" and "Poiana";
- Submarine rescue ship "Anteo" with a SRV-300 deep-submergence rescue vehicle
While up to the African War the X MAS was the whole raiders unit, nowadays the title is reserved only for the sea-faring part of the Arditi Incursori.