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An Italian Air Force F-35B was spotted carrying the GPU-9/A 25mm gun pod, providing the first known visual confirmation of the pod being used by an F-35 operator outside the United States.

An Italian Air Force F-35B Lightning II was spotted for the first time with the GPU-9/A 25mm gun pod, confirming Italy as the first export operator of the system. Aviation photographer Diego Mor captured a photo of the aircraft as it prepared to land at Decimomannu Air Base on Sept. 30, 2026, and kindly shared it with us.

Decimomannu is located in Sardinia, near the ranges used by the Italian Air Force for weapons training. While this might point out to live-fire activities, it is unclear if these were actually conducted and, in that case, if they were part of the operational training of the pilots or an Operational Test and Evaluation (OT&E) campaign.

The acquisition of the gun pod by Italy was already expected, although a visual confirmation of the delivery was still missing. In 2024, we reported here at The Aviationist that the GPU-9/A’s 25mm rounds were included in a multi-year program for the acquisition of new weapons for the Italian Navy’s F-35Bs.

The Italian Navy is currently replacing its AV-8B+ Harriers with 20 F-35Bs, joining forces when needed with 20 other F-35Bs being delivered to the Italian Air Force. It is unclear, however, if the Navy is already employing the gun pod on its own F-35s.

The GPU-9/A 25 mm gun pod, previously known also as the GAU-22A Gun Pod. | Source: Lockheed Martin

Italy is one of the three countries operating the Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) variant of the F-35 outside of the U.S., with the others being the UK and Japan. While the UK has confirmed that it has no plans to acquire or integrate the 25 mm gun pod on its F-35Bs, there is no information regarding the Japanese aircraft.

The GPU-9/A gun pod

Contrary to the F-35A variant, the F-35B and F-35C don’t have the internal GAU-22/A 25mm cannon, and are thus forced to employ an externally mounted gun pod. The gun pod, technically known as the Gun Pod Unit (GPU) – 9/A has always been quite controversial, as both the F-35B and F-35C have to rely on this external device that, despite the “stealthy” shape is believed to induce a Radar Cross Section (RCS) degradation. It is worth noting that the variant used by the F-35C, although apparently similar, is designated as GAU-8/A.

Another controversy is related to the ammo carried in the pod, 220 rounds, which is less than the ammo carried by the aircraft replaced by the F-35 (300 rounds on the Harrier, 412 on the Hornet and 578 on the Super Hornet). It should be noted that the F-35A carries even less ammo, just 180 rounds.

The pod has its share of trouble, with some notable incidents, like the Class C mishap when a PGU-32/U Semi-Armor Piercing High Explosive Incendiary-Tracer (SAPHEI-T) 25mm round exploded after leaving the gun pod during a night CAS (Close Air Support) mission over the Yuma Range Complex.

A U.S. Marine Corps F-35B with the centerline gun pod clearly visible under the fuselage. | Source: U.S. Marine Corps photo by 1st Lt. Zachary Bodner

In July 2021, an USMC F-35B, which was deployed on the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean, was forced to divert and land at Kadena Air Base because of unspecified issues with the gun pod, with the aircraft taxing to a remote area and with firefighters on standby as maintainers troubleshoot the problem.

The GAU-22 is reported to be more than 40 pounds lighter and requires 20 percent less overall space than the earlier GAU-12 5-barrel 25mm gun. The new GAU-22 weapon has a reported rate of fire of “up to 3,300 rounds per minute.”

One final point regarding the pod and its potential use by the Italian Air Force: it is not yet clear whether the F-35’s gun will be employed in both the air-to-ground and air-to-air roles, although the service may also be interested in exploring its use for counter-UAS missions.

At present, Italian F-35s, both the A and B variants, can only carry the AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile) for air-to-air engagements. Italian F-35s have already supported both domestic and NATO QRA (Quick Reaction Alert) missions, and while they are expected to receive the AIM-9X Sidewinder in the future, using an advanced and relatively expensive air-to-air missile against a low-cost drone, such as those recently engaged by Italian Eurofighter Typhoons in the Baltic region, would not be a cost-effective solution in the long term. While using an F-35 to engage a Russian drone with the gun pod would still be a sub-optimal solution, it would nevertheless be preferable to expending an expensive air-to-air missile.

This means the Italian Air Force could be interested in using the gun pod not only against ground targets in a traditional CAS (Close Air Support) role, but also for counter-UAS missions, hence the need to test it in the Sardinian ranges.

Thanks again to Diego Mor for the photo he sent us. Make sure to follow him on Instagram for more!