3rd Special Operations Helicopter Regiment "Aldebaran"

Since the 1975 army reform Italian army aviation units are named for celestial objects:[2] regiments, are numbered with a single digit and named for stars in the 88 modern constellationss. Accordingly, an army aviation regiment's coat of arms highlights the name-giving star within its constellation. Squadron groups were numbered with two digits and named for constellations, or planets of the Solar System. The 3rd Special Operations Helicopter Regiment "Aldebaran" received its name and war flag from the disbanded 3rd Army Aviation Regiment "Aldebaran", which was named for Aldebaran the brightest star in the Taurus constellation.

The regiment was formed on 10 November 2014 at Viterbo Airport by elevating the existing 26th Special Operations Helicopter Unit "Giove" (26th REOS). The regiment received the name and war flag from the 3rd Army Aviation Regiment "Aldebaran", which was based at Bresso Airfield near Milan and active from 15 December 1993 until 1 September 1998 as the aviation unit of the 3rd Army Corps with the 23rd Reconnaissance Helicopters Squadrons Group "Eridano" and 53rd Multirole Helicopters Squadrons Group "Cassiopea".[3][4]

The 26th Special Operations Helicopter Unit "Giove" had been formed on 4 November 2002 by merging the 39th Squadrons Group "Drago" based at Alghero Airport and the 51st Squadrons Group "Leone" of the 1st Army Aviation Regiment "Antares" based at Viterbo Airport. The new unit then received the name of the disbanded 26th Squadrons Group "Giove" based at Pisa Air Base and joined the 1st Antares regiment.[5][4]

The 3rd Aldebaran regiment was formed as result of a study carried out by the Army General Staff, related to the reform of the Special Forces sector. The regiment, which is nowadays validated by NATO as a Special Operations Air Task Group (SOATG), fields three types of helicopters: CH-47F ER, AB-412A and NH90A.

The 26th Giove, the operational unit of the regiment, whose motto is "Numquam Periculum Sine Periculo Vincitur" (No danger can ever be overcome without risk), can perform several tasks, detaching Special Operations Air Task Units (SOATU) to conduct operations in support of other Italian Special Operations Forces units. The SOATUs are capable to conduct operational missions on short notice, in multiple environments, at day/night, in most weather conditions, opting for discreet, covert, or low prominence flight modes, with a time-on-target within +/- 1 minute.

As of 2019 the 3rd Special Operations Helicopter Regiment "Aldebaran" consists of:[6][4]

• 3rd Special Operations Helicopter Regiment "Aldebaran"", at Viterbo Airport
  • Headquarters Unit
  • 26th Army Aviation Squadrons Group "Giove"
    • 261st Medium Transport Helicopters Squadron (CH-47F ER Chinook)
    • 262nd Combat Support Helicopters Squadron (AB-412A helicopters)
    • 263rd Tactical Transport Helicopters Squadron (NH90A helicopters)
  • Support Squadrons Group
    • Logistic Support Squadron
    • Aircraft Maintenance Squadron
  • Special Forces/Special Operation Forces Crew Formation Center and Training Squadron
  • Forward Operating Base at Pisa Air Base

Selection and training is very rigorous and is tailored according to the basic Italian Special Forces training syllabus. There is first a selection phase divided into two steps and then a training phase. The first part of the selection phase is based on several psychological and fitness tests. The second part of the selection process lasts two weeks and puts the trainees under physical and psychological stress. Those who pass the selection process move to the basic training phase, which puts the trainees in a series of training environments. All trainees must attend and graduate specific courses in, among others, close quarter combat, explosives, land navigation, etc.. Trainees who graduated from this basic special force training syllabus are assigned to their final destination unit and will receive further advanced training in specific fields related to the tactical tasks of their unit.

The 3rd Aldebaran has been deployed repeatedly abroad; the best-known deployments have been:

• Mission Restore Hope, Somalia, 1992
• Mission Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan, 2001 to present
• Operation Ancient Babylon, Iraq, 2003–2004

• Italian Army Website: 3° Reggimento Elicotteri per Operazioni Speciali "Aldebaran"

• U.S. 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment - Night Stalkers
• British Joint Special Forces Aviation Wing
• Canadian 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron
• French 4e Regiment d'hélicoptères des Forces Spéciales
• Australian 171st Aviation Squadron