It is based in Furbara, near Rome and part of the Comando interforze per le Operazioni delle Forze Speciali (COFS—Special Forces Operations Command).

Until 8 April 2008 the unit was named Reparto Incursori Aeronautica Militare (RIAM—Air Force Raiders Group) but with the expansion and evolution of the unit's assignments and its size, the name was changed to "17° Stormo Incursori".

This means that the entire operational force will be (at full strength) from 64 to 192 soldiers.

In the field, the operative force is equipped with the VTLM "Lince", quads and jeeps.

It also uses mini UAVs such as the "Strix" produced by Galileo Avionica, and L-3 Communication's "ROVER IV".