The handover with General B.A. Carmine De Luca in the presence of General S.A. Pasquale Preziosa, Commander of the A.M. Schools/3rd R.A. The handover ceremony took place at the “A. Barbieri” airport in Guidonia in the presence of Air Squad General Pasquale Preziosa, Commander of the A.M. Schools/3rd Air Region, and the many local religious and civil authorities who attended. General De Luca, in his farewell speech, outlined a summary of his period of command, recalling the ambitious objectives he had set out to achieve upon taking over the leadership of the School: “Upgrading and internationalisation. Ambitious objectives and today, as I prepare to hand over command, I wonder how much of all this has been accomplished“Fully achieved results in the two-year period served as Commander of the School, which have led to the updating and adaptation of the training provision in the sectors of Air Cooperation and Remote Sensing, in order to respond to new operational requirements, and to the internationalisation of the Institute. In concluding his speech, General De Luca thanked the school's personnel for the commitment and determination they put in, thanks to which it was possible to achieve important milestones. General Lamanna, after thanking the higher authorities for the trust placed in him by assigning him the role of School Commander, reiterated his commitment and intention to continue the process of development of the Institute begun by his predecessor:“I am aware, especially in the current context, of the difficulties we will have to face to continue the development process that has begun. However, with the right determination, clarity of purpose and constant commitment, cohesion and mutual trust, and very importantly, harmony and serenity in the workplace, I am sure that the difficulties can be brilliantly overcome”General Preziosa, who concluded the ceremony with his speech, once again emphasised the role and importance of the Institute:“The School of Aerocooperation has progressively assumed ever greater importance, driven by the need to qualify joint forces personnel in niche sectors for ongoing operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Balkans, Lebanon and Libya. The optical or radar interpretation of information provided by satellites and remotely piloted aircraft, for example, relies on the training of imagery analysts at this institute: this is a capability to be proud of, with many personnel from various organisations, including foreign ones, having been trained at this School”Continuing his speech, General Preziosa expressed his satisfaction to the personnel of the School of Aerocooperation for “the excellent results achieved, the fruit of sacrifice and competent dedication”. Before concluding, the Commander of the AM Schools / 3rd Air Region conveyed to General De Luca “the heartfelt greeting of Defence and the Italian Air Force” and his personal appreciation for the work carried out. To General Lamanna, on the other hand, he wished “a fruitful period full of satisfaction, in the wake already traced and with the difficulties currently known”.
General Lamanna was born in Marino (Rome) on 9th April 1954 and entered the Air Force Academy in 1974 with the “Pegaso III” Course. He attended the 38th Normal Course at the Air Warfare School and numerous courses at NATO and foreign schools.
In 1979, following his pilot training and having obtained his military pilot’s licence,he was posted to the 51st Wing at Istrana as an Air Defence Pilot on the F-104S, where he subsequently held the posts of Commander of the 353rd and 354th Squadrons. In 1987, after attending the Cottesmore Flight School (UK) on the Tornado aircraft, he was posted to the 155th Combat Bombing Group of the 6th Wing at Ghedi, where he held the posts of Head of Operations and Head of Training and Standardisation until 1990, when the Group was transferred to Piacenza Air Base, headquarters of the 50th CBR Wing. From 1990 to 1995, having been transferred to the 50th Wing, he held the posts of Head of the Operations Office and Commander of the 155th Group, taking part in Operation “Desert Storm” in 1991, during which he flew numerous sorties on combat missions. In 1995, he was assigned to the 3rd Division – 1st Office of the Air Force General Staff as Head of the Aerotactical Forces Section, and in 1997 he served as Deputy Head of the same Office. From September 1997 to September 1999, he commanded the 53rd Wing at Cameri. From September 1999 to April 2001, he held the post of Head of the Coordination Office within the General Office of the Chief of the Defence Staff; he was subsequently posted to Canada (Ottawa) at the Italian Embassy as Air Force and Defence Attaché until 2004. On his return from abroad, following a brief period at the Air Force Schools General Command as Project Manager, he was posted to the Joint Forces High Command to take up the post of Head of the Planning Department. From March 2008 to October 2009, he held the post of Head of the Planning and Coordination Office and Deputy Chief of Staff of the Air Force Command. From 31 October 2009, he served as Commander of the 1st Air Brigade, newly established at Centocelle Airport. General Lamanna – who has logged over 3,000 flying hours, mainly on fighter aircraft (F-104, Tornado and Tornado ADV) – has been awarded the following honours and decorations: Gold Cross for Length of Military Service (40 years), Air Force Military Medal for Long-Distance Flight (gold), Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, Commemorative Medal with Crossed Swords for participation in military operations in the Persian Gulf, Commemorative Medal for the Liberation of Kuwait (established by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). General Lamanna is married and has two daughters. The Air Cooperation School is a joint-services institute tasked with training and qualifying officers and non-commissioned officers of the Armed Forces, the State’s armed and auxiliary corps, as well as civilian officials in the specific fields of air cooperation and remote sensing.
