Italy-Based Marines Eye Kosovo

American pilots stationed in Italy are preparing for President Clinton to order air strikes in Kosovo should NATO decide to take action against Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic. CBS News Correspondent Anthony Mason reports from Aviano Air Force Base.

If NATO calls for an air campaign against the Serbs, the U.S. will launch jets from Aviano, which is located in the foothills of the Italian Alps.

The American pilots based there, such as Maj. J.Q. Watton and Capt. Steve Giovenella, have already been enforcing the peace in Bosnia for the past two years.

"We go and snuff hot spots before they really heat up. And that's what we do every day," says Giovenella.

From the base, it's just 45 minutes to the former Yugoslavia. The F-16 fighter jets fly over the Adriatic sea and then inland.

Six to eight times a day, pilots are given their instructions. After reviewing the military hardware they might spot from the air and stripping off any identifying patches in case of capture, they board their planes.

Their job is to make their presence felt. While they may not want to be seen, they like to be heard.

"Sometimes, we're especially tasked to make noise, believe it or not. And we do that pretty well," Giovanella says.

However, this past February, Marine pilots made noise and headlines when a jet out of Aviano severed the cable on a ski gondola in an Italian resort, sending 20 people plunging to their deaths.

The jet had been on a low-level training mission. Italian officials called the accident a disgrace, and Italian communists called for Aviano to be closed down.

"It's one of those things you wish had never happened, but it's there," explains Gen. Tim Peppe. "You have to deal with it as best you can."

Peppe says the accident has not affected the way the base is run, although he has not allowed any Marines to return to flying on low-level training missions yet.

With the ski lift incident still making headlines in the Italian papers, the U.S. military is under intense political pressure in Italy. But for American pilots, Aviano remains one of the most sought-after assignments.

Aviano doesn't just train with the world's most sophisticated jets -- they fly them for real. As far as F-16's go, the air base has the best fleet worldwide. Soon, they may be put to the test.

While their mission so far has been to keep the peace, a NATO order could send the Aviano pilots into battle in a matter of days.