The award was presented to the 70th Wing, the only national centre for the selection and training of future generations of pilots.
On 7 and 8 September, on the occasion of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the’Italian Air Force has participated in the religious and civil ceremonies organised by the Pontifical Delegation of Loreto and the Municipal Administration, as proof of the established and deep bond between Lauretan town and the Armed Forces.
On the evening of Thursday 7 September, the Commander of Schools/3rd Air Region of Bari, Air Force General Silvano Frigerio, along with the Commander of the Aviation English Training Centre (Cen.For.Av.En.) in Loreto, Colonel Giancarlo Filippo, and Commander of the 70th Wing of Latina, Colonel Giuseppe Bellomo, took part in the celebration of Solemn Vespers, presided over by His Excellency Monsignor Gerardo Antonazzo, Bishop of Sora-Cassino-Aquino-Pontecorvo.
Subsequently, the event continued with a procession through the city streets. Sacred Effigy of the Virgin of Loreto, carried on shoulders by Air Force personnel, presided over by the Archbishop Prelate of Loreto and Pontifical Delegate for the Holy House, H.E. Monsignor Fabio Dal Cin.
Friday, 8 September, began with a Meeting-seminar on the subject “The path of beauty. An immanent interpretative itinerary towards peace”, moderated by Prof. Gerardo Villanacci, full professor of Private Law at the Polytechnic University of Marche, and held by Dr. Barbara Jatta, Director of the Vatican Museums and President of the Study Centre dedicated to Lorenzo Lotto, and by the Minister of Culture, Hon. Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano.
The morning continued with the celebration of Holy Mass, the recitation of the Angelus, and the subsequent “lighting the lamp of peace for the world” curated by Hon. Minister Sangiuliano, a symbolic act for the daily supplication of the pilgrims to the Madonna of Loreto. Subsequently, along the vertical axis of the Sanctuary square, the fly over of an aircraft formation SF-260B supplied with 70th Wing, a testament to the inseparable bond between the Air Force and its Holy Patroness, with the traditional blessing of Msgr. Dal Cin.
In the evening, the Mayor of Loreto, Mr. Moreno Pieroni, presented the award “Loreto City Trophy” To the Commander of the 70th Wing, Colonel Giuseppe Bellomo, for “the persevering and delicate role played by the 70th Wing as the sole national centre for the selection, training and flight instruction of personnel from the Air Force, other Armed Forces, Armed State Corps, and students from other nations. Over ten thousand pilot licences have been awarded over the years, allowing the Flying School to represent a safe and effective guide in the development of many generations of aviators. The high sense of duty, honour and discipline with which the 70th Wing carries out its mission helps to maintain the high prestige of the Air Force, the Institutions and Italy as a whole within the national and international context.”.
Colonel Bellomo, in thanking all the Civil, Religious, and Military Authorities for the important recognition, stressed that “In the centenary year of the Air Force, it is both a privilege and an honour to receive the award symbolising the ideal twinning between the city of Loreto and the Armed Force. I am proud and honoured to be in command of the 70th Wing, a small but enormously strategic entity undergoing continuous evolutionary transformation, whose unparalleled and incisive work has helped train generations of pilots for the Air Force, other Armed Forces, and the State Armed Corps. My greatest thanks go to the men and women who are part of it; their silent work is deservedly recognised today!”
The celebrations concluded in the evening with the Concert by the Fanfare of the Command of Air Force Schools / 3rd Air Region of the Italian Air Force in Madonna Square.
It 70th Wing and the Aviation English Training Centre They are under the command of the Air Force Schools Command and 3rd Air Region of Bari, one of the three top Commands of the Armed Force. It ensures the selection, recruitment, military, cultural and professional training of Air Force personnel and flight training (at an international level), through the study and adoption of innovative teaching and training methodologies focused on the learner and informed by innovation, creativity, optimisation of human and material resources, eco-sustainability, constant engagement with institutions and the territory for the benefit of the community.
It 70th Wing assists in the institutional tasks of selecting and training future military pilots for the Air Force, other Armed Forces and State Armed Corps, as well as cadets from other nations. The Pontine Flying School has issued over 15,000 pilot licenses to date, accumulating a total of approximately 500,000 flight hours.
It Aviation English Training Centre It is responsible for the training and assessment of the linguistic competencies of Air Force personnel, and for the assessment and teaching of aviation English., “Aviation English, to air traffic controllers and flying personnel of the Air Force, but also to that of the other armed forces and ministries.
