The collaboration between the Air Force and the National Fire Brigade continues in the fight against fires. On Friday, November 30, the 42nd National Course for Fire Operations Director (D.O.S.) concluded at the Lamezia Terme (CZ) training center, with the participation of the Squad Leaders/Section Leaders of the National Fire Brigade from the regions of Emilia Romagna, Piedmont, Lombardy, Basilicata, Campania and Puglia.
In 2018, the Airspace Control Training Department (RACSA) contributed to supporting 10 editions, resulting in a significant intensification of training efforts to cope with the fire emergency that annually affects our country. During the closing ceremony, Engineer Luigi Ricci, Coordinator of the Course for the Central Training Directorate in Rome, highlighted how the profession of the D.O.S. is important in combating forest fires thanks to the achievement of greater standardization between ground personnel and navigation personnel, as well as the substantial reduction in the fire extinguishing times. The commander of the Airspace Control Training Department, Colonel Dario Tarantino, present at the ceremony, appreciated the sense of duty, the spirit of cohesion and teamwork that distinguish the men and women of the National Fire Brigade Corps, an added value and a determining factor in the team for fighting forest fires. The course, divided into two training periods, saw the entire participation of teaching staff from the National Fire Brigade Corps with training in professional subjects such as applied topography for rescue operations, national and regional regulations on Fire Prevention, the participation of different forest species in fires, applied meteorology, characteristics of the aircraft used on the fire and, last but not least, techniques, tactics and strategies to combat any type of fire.
The second phase, entirely aeronautical, saw the participation of two instructors from RACSA who taught the course participants techniques for managing and controlling the aircraft involved in the fire area, as well as the correct use of the mandatory aeronautical terminology for communicating with the navigation personnel involved in the activity. During the course, approximately 180 exercises were carried out over three days in a simulated environment, many of them concerning the management of air traffic in the extinguishing area, including critical situations such as emergencies in flight and the coordination with the men and the ground vehicles involved on the scene. The course concluded with practical qualification at the air training field named “Caronte” adjacent to the Lamezia Terme teaching center, which remains the only one in Europe and in Italy to be authorized by the competent aeronautical authorities for training with Canadair aircraft.
The RACSA is the training agency of the Italian Air Force, which has the task of training the Officer Sub-Lieutenant and Troops of all the Armed Forces, including foreign ones, in Air Defense Control, Air Traffic and Meteorology, as well as providing training support to other State Departments such as Civil Protection and the National Fire Brigade Corps.
Located at the Pratica di Mare airport “Mario de Bernardi”, the Department is subordinate to the Air Squadrons Command through the 9th Air Brigade ISTAR – EW (“Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance – Electronic Warfare”).
