The Italian Air Force practiced missile firings from Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft at the UK Ministry of Defence’s Hebrides Range in Scotland.
Their campaign assessed the viability of firing Meteor and AMRAAM beyond visual range air-to-air missiles from the Typhoon’s weapon system.
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The service conducted air and ground evaluations using the Telemetric Operational Missile variant of Meteor, which the Italians used to collect and assess flight and performance data.
Nato’s Support and Procurement Agency, or NSPA, announced the exercise in a statement on 15 April. The UK permit alliance members to conduct firing campaigns from fighter jets at the range following a deal made in June 2024 between NSPA and the British defence company, QinetiQ, which manages MoD Hebrides. The deal covers a period of three years.
This agreement consists of certain activities from air-to-air missile engagement to ground attack. Nations can select these with options from an agreed list of items including a various aerial targets, and their prospective payloads and accessories.
The Spanish Air and Space Force was the first ally to conduct firing campaigns from aircraft at the range a few months after the contract.
Space available to the Italian Air Force
The MOD Hebrides Range is located off the North West coast of Scotland and consists of a deep range for complex weapons trials and in-service firings, and an inner range for ground-based air defence Test and Evaluation.
This site occupies approximately 115,000km² of sanitised airspace with unlimited altitude. This large area and its nearby airfield make it ideal for air-launched weapons operations.
Italy’s military have their own weapons testing site in Salto di Quirra on the island of Sardinia. There, the Italian Navy fired the Marter extended-range anti-ship missile in February 2025.
The service have previously operated at Orland Air Force Station in Norway, where the Italian F-35s deployed the AIM-120 AMRAAM for the first time during Arctic Challenge 2023.
Future plans
These validation tests come after the Italian Air Force confirmed its acquisition for up to 24 new Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft, which will replace older Tranche 1 models.
Users will equip these new Typhoons with Brimstone III and Meteor missiles, feature sensors and enhanced connectivity.
Additionally, the aircraft features an intelligent fuel system that provides extended range and safety, with a maximum capacity of 7,600kg. They are designed to remain operational beyond 2060.
According to GlobalData intelligence, Italy plan to spend more than $6.3bn (€5.5bn) on the Typhoon fleet over the the next ten years; the country’s largest defence platform investment in the forecast period. Notably, this is slightly more than the nation’s contribution to the trilateral Global Combat Air Programme to develop a sixth generation fighter jet.
