The first of a series of meetings aimed at raising awareness of the history and role of the Armed Force was held in Lecce. The initiative is part of the preparatory activities for the celebrations for the Centenary of the Arma Azzurra.
The conference hall of the “Ecotekne” university campus in Lecce hosted, on the morning of November 25, the conference “Why fly? The origins, from the Wright Brothers to the Great War ”, organized by the Arma Aeronautica - Aviators of Italy Association. Lecce was the first of a series of 15 meetings, which will be held in as many Italian cities to retrace the 100 years of the Air Force and prepare the ground for the celebration of the centenary of the Arma Azzurra which will occur on 28 March 2023.
"With this project, the Arma Aeronautica Association intends to contribute to the dissemination, in civil society and especially among young people, of the knowledge of the contribution that the Air Force has provided and provides, with great professionalism, a sense of duty and a spirit of sacrifice, in defense of national interests and, above all, of the serene coexistence and industriousness of all Italian citizens and those of NATO member countries ", explained Chief Inspector General Nazzareno Cardinali, president of the Rome 2 section" Luigi Broglio ", creator of the project, carried out in cooperation with the Center for Military Aeronautical Studies (CESMA).
The conference, which was moderated by Dr. Antonio Liguori, was held in strict compliance with the precautionary measures imposed by the current health emergency.
The Air Squad General Giulio Mainini, President of the Association, invited the boys to pursue their aeronautical dreams with determination in order to overcome the inevitable difficulties and tests. "The selection is tough but the satisfaction of succeeding is enormous", he underlined "I would not change a minute of my forty-four years in the Air Force!"
Colonel Paciaroni dealt with the theme “From the Belle Epoque to Vittorio Veneto; fifty years that have revolutionized history, society, science, technology and art ". Afterwards, Prof. Giulio Avanzini, of the University of Salento, spoke about “The birth of aviation: from the dream of flight to the Wright brothers and the pioneers of Italian flight”. Engineer Antonio Zilli, from the Aerospace Technological District, addressed the topic “Grottaglie Airport and challenges for the aerospace industry: UAS and suborbital flight. Innovation coordinated by the Aerospace Technological District ". The last speech was by Colonel Filippo Nannelli, Commander of the 61st Wing of Galatina, who illustrated the topic "Puglia is a land of training for pilots: from yesterday to today".
"The conference is an opportunity not to be missed to learn more about the past and present of the Air Force, the protagonist of important and crucial events in Italian history", underlined General Cardinali at the end of the activity, "but also to deepen extremely concrete and current issues of the Italian military and industrial sectors of aerospace and defense linked to the Apulian and Salento reality ».
The audience, made up mainly of children from the Higher Secondary Education Institutes of Lecce, proved to be extremely attentive to the issues dealt with and, at the end of the speeches, the students addressed numerous questions to Gen. Mainini and Col. Nannelli. The latter, in recalling the motto of the Italian Air Force “With Value towards the Stars”, encouraged young people “to face every challenge that will arise before them with value. Never stop before the first obstacle: only in this way will you be able to reach the set goals and make your dreams come true ".