On Monday 28 February, General Panato replaced General D.A. Franco Marsiglia, who will continue in his position as Deputy Director. After completing his secondary high school studies in Verona, General Panato attended the Aeronautical Academy in Pozzuoli, passing all the courses and receiving the appointment as an officer. He obtained the military pilot’s certificate on the G91 aircraft at the Aviogetti Flight School in Amendola (Foggia). As a military pilot, he was assigned to the 3rd Aerobrigata of Villafranca (Verona), where he flew the F-104 fighter jet. Subsequently, after qualifying as an aircraft tester at the Empire Test Pilots’ School in Great Britain, he worked at the Experimental Flight Department in Pratica di Mare (Rome), where he collaborated, among other things, on the flight tests of the TORNADO and AM-X aircraft. During his tester role, he also served as a flight demonstrator for the TORNADO and G-222 aircraft at numerous events in Italy and abroad. During his career, in addition to holding senior positions in the General Staff, where he was involved in the development programs for new aircraft, including the Eurofighter 2000 and the investigation of flight accidents, he was Commander of the 311th Flight Testing Group; Commander of the 6th Squadron at Ghedi (Brescia); Commander in 2nd at the Air Academy; and Commander of the Air Division based in Milan, which includes the attack and reconnaissance aircraft of the Air Force, in addition to the National Acrobatics Patrol. Furthermore, he directed the Office of the Chief of Staff of the Air Force for more than two years. From 1999 to 2002, he was Military Advisor at the Permanent Representation of Italy to the Atlantic Council in Brussels. From 2004 to 2006, he was Deputy Chief of Staff of the Air Force. Subsequently, he was Vice Director of SISMI and AISE (Agency for Information and External Security). In addition to attending war school courses, flight safety courses, and management courses, he earned a degree in Aeronautical Sciences at the ‘Federico II’ University of Naples and a degree in International and Diplomatic Sciences at the University of Trieste. He has accumulated 4,000 hours of flight time on various aircraft: mainly jets, but also transport and helicopters. General Panato is married and has two daughters.
