Italian Navy to equip F-35Bs with JSM, SPEAR 3 stand-off weapons

The Italian Navy has spelled out the future weapons package for the F-35B (foreground) that it is to field over the coming decades in place of the AV-8B (background). For the first time, this includes both the JSM and SPEAR 3 stand-off missiles. (Italian Navy)

The Italian Navy (Marina Militare Italiana: MMI) is to equip its Lockheed Martin F-35B Lighting II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) fleet with two stand-off missile types not previously disclosed.

The Senate of the Republic, Chamber of Deputies 19th Legislature's Documentation of the Examination of Government Acts published on 15 July revealed that the MMI's fleet of F-35Bs will be armed with the Kongsberg-RTX Joint Strike Missile (JSM) and the MBDA Selected Precision Effects At Range (SPEAR) 3 air-to-surface missile, among other previously disclosed weapon types.

“The armament programme, in international co-operation, aims to equip the country with a fifth-generation aeronautical weapon system capable of replacing the legacy [McDonnell Douglas] AV-8B [Harrier II] line, with an operational time horizon of at least 30 years, to effectively cope with the growing complexity of current and future operational scenarios,” the document said. “The MMI line will consist of 15 F-35B shorttake-off and vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft for which the availability of armament and self-protection systems, according to actual needs, capable of supporting and protecting theNaval Squadron is central,” the document added.

As noted in the document, the proposed weapons fit is geared at ensuring the MMI's F-35B fleet has quantities needed for a hypothetical six-month operational scenario.