Italy has bought five Predator unmanned aircraft worth nearly 50 million dollars (40 million euros) from the United States and four of the craft are due to arrive in Italy in November. One was destroyed during training in the United States.

"If the government decided on a use of this type (against clandestine immigration) the air force would meet this demand," said air force chief general Leonardo Tricarico, quoted by Italian news agency ANSA.

"We attach considerable importance to this craft. Its potential is enormous and not only in the military field," he said.

The drones could be operational by January 2005, according to ANSA.

Italy, with its thousands of kilometres of unguarded coastline is the country worst affected by the immigration crisis affecting the European Union.

In September officials said 10,000 illegal immigrants had arrived in the country since January. More than 1,000 have arrived on the southern island of Lampedusa in the last few days.

All rights reserved. � 2005 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.