Promoted by the cultural association IDEAE, the “Volare sicuri” (Flying Safely) project presented the seminar “Accidental IMC – Disorientation in Flight”. Welcoming the participants, around a hundred pilots from general aviation and recreational sports aviation, some of whom arrived at the Lazio air base aboard their own ultralight or twin-engine aircraft, was the Commander of the CSV, Air Division General Fabio Molteni, followed by the opening of proceedings for IDEAE by General Carlo Landi, now retired but formerly an experimental test pilot for the Italian Air Force and former director of the Aeroclub d’Italia.
The initiative involved various professionals from the Air Force, including test pilots and experts in aerospace medicine, meteorologists, and air traffic controllers, for an operational and scientific comparison on one of the most insidious phenomena one can unintentionally encounter during piloting, especially in aircraft with limited onboard instrumentation, namely spatial disorientation in flight under conditions of poor or no visibility, which in technical jargon is termed IMC, Instrument Meteorological Conditions.
In particular, the seminar began with an address by Colonel Marco Lucertini, Commander of the Air and Space Medicine Department (RMAS) of the CSV, who gave a presentation on the aero-physiology of the human orientation system and aspects connected with flight. This was followed by presentations by two test pilots from the Flight Experimental Department (RSV) and Commander Tamburini. The occasion proved valuable for sharing the most significant training and operational knowledge and experiences gained internationally on the subject, learning about the aero-physiological aspects that make such flight conditions so delicate, and discussing together suggestions and techniques for addressing common errors and related problems.
The works concluded with an intervention by Lieutenant Colonel Guido Cante, from the National Centre for Meteorology and Climatology of the Air Force (CNMCA), who explained to attendees how to read and interpret forecasts, where to find them, and how to avoid Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC).
Throughout the rest of the day, attendees had the opportunity to try out the spatial disorientation simulator, one of the pieces of equipment that the Aerospace Medicine Department of the Centre uses to reproduce and study all the extreme conditions to which the human body can be subjected during flight. They also attended a briefing at the 14th Wing on the role of the flight controller as an aid in accidental IMC, given by personnel from the National Flight Assistance Body (ENAV) and by air traffic controllers from the Italian Air Force. The day concluded with an in-flight visit to the KC-767 A tanker and the flight simulator, and the presentation of certificates by General Landi to the participants. Letter of thanks from the President of the Institute for Defence and Aerospace (IDEAE).
