On Thursday, July 7, the handover of command to Col. Degni took place in the presence of Gen. S.A. Tosi, Commander of the Air Force. In his farewell speech, Col. Degni emphasized that, during his two years in command, the professionalism and efforts of all personnel enabled the Department to provide the usual, substantial contribution to achieving the objectives of the Armed Forces, particularly during the latest ‘Red Flag’ exercise in Alaska and the recent operations to confront the Libyan crisis.
Colonel Schiavo thanked the Higher Authorities for the assignment of the prestigious new position. General Tosi expressed his satisfaction with the excellent operational capabilities implemented and the results achieved by the Department in a particularly delicate phase for the Armed Forces, which are committed to ensuring adequate levels of security and protection in Libya within the framework of the NATO operation ‘Unified Protector’. Colonel Degni leaves the command of the 50th Squadron to take up the position of Chief of the 1st Office of the IIIR Department of the Air Staff. Colonel Schiavo, born in 1967 in Arzignano (Vicenza), attended the Air Academy of Pozzuoli (Naples) with the ‘Falco IV’ course. During his career, he served at the 6th Ghedi Air Wing (Brescia), where he held the position of Commander of the 102nd Flight Group; at the Air Academy, as Commander of the 1st Regular Course – ‘Falco V’; and at the Air Staff – IV Department. Subsequently, he assumed the position of Head of the ‘Network Enabled Capabilities’ Office for Planning, Programming and Financial Management at the VI Department of the Air Staff. He holds a degree in Political Science, with a specialization in Political and Economic Sciences, from the University of Pavia, and a degree in International and Diplomatic Studies from the University of Trieste. He holds a first-level degree in Aeronautical Sciences from the ’Federico II‘ University of Naples and a Master’s degree in International and Strategic Military Studies from the ’LUISS’ University of Rome. Finally, he holds a Master’s degree in Strategic Studies at the Air University of Maxwell AFB (United States). He is married and has two daughters.
