Italy retires AMX light strike jet

The Italian Air Force retired the last of its AMX combat aircraft on 5 April. (Italian Air Force)

The Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militaire Italiana: AMI) has retired its Aeritalia Macchi eXperimental (AMX) light attack aircraft after 35 years of service.

The last of the single-engined jets that Italy co-developed with Brazil in the 1980s and 1990s were withdrawn from operational service during a ceremony on 5 April.

Designated A-11B Ghibli by the AMI, the last of 136 examples of the type ordered by the service were being operated by the 51st Wing, 132nd Fighter Bomber Reconnaissance Squadron at Istrana military airport.

In AMI service, the AMX holds the record of being the most used tactical combat aircraft flown by the service in out-of-area missions. Its retirement is part of a wider recapitalisation of the AMI that is also seeing the withdrawal of the Panavia Tornado in favour of the Eurofighter Typhoon and Lockheed Martin F-35A/B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter.

The Brazilian Air Force, which ordered 56 AMX aircraft of which 36 remain in service, is due to retire the type in 2025.

For more information on the AMX, please see Leonardo (Alenia/Aermacchi)/Embraer AMX .