Field 100, created as a modern geoglyph on a surface of 4 hectares, it is a path which reconstructs the hundred-year history of the Armed Force from its very first steps. UAn emotional journey that engages and amazes the participating audience using real living dioramas, with the use of structures, aircraft, vehicles, equipment and “reenactors”, perfectly dressed according to the customs and traditions of various eras, who bring to life to individual moments among the most representative of the history of the Italian Air Force.
The 100-year timeframe is divided into 4 distinct historical periods:
The thread that connects history from its dawn to the present day is represented by a straight line that
It traverses the entire historical path, and at its apexes are two of the most representative aircraft of
our Air Force, the SVA (which completed Gabriele D’Annunzio's flight over Vienna), and the F-35, the current spearhead of our aviation.
Access is through the “1923 Portal”, which expresses the architectural current of Rationalism. From the 1920s onwards, everything had to meet the requirements of functionality and essentiality. The aeroplane is a symbol of power, it is pure technology, it is man's new conquest that has moved forward the limits of what is possible to achieve in terms of collective and individual capabilities. Art was also influenced by this: a futurist painting current, aeropainting, was born. It is the time of great records, great raids and great ocean cruises. Once past the portal, one immediately comes across three scaled huts, representing the historical reconstruction of the Caproni workshops, with a display of original material. There is also a Macchi MC.72 and 2 engines (one of which is a Macchi MC.72) with their mechanics. One of the shows offered to the public is the start-up of these original engines and a speed measuring tower. Other aircraft on display include a Gabardini single-seater and a Blèriot, the protagonist of both the first successful crossing of the English Channel, on 25 July 1909, and the first war flight during the Italo-Turkish war, with the execution of a reconnaissance flight over Aziza, on 23 October 1911. Near the transition between the 1930s and 1940s, the SVA aircraft stands out, purposely superimposed on its image drawn on the ground, as part of the giant geoglyph depicting the Air Force's centenary logo.
You enter this section through the “1940 Portal,” created with functional, operational architecture, using materials and styles typical of the period. This area is dedicated to a painful moment in our memory: World War II. The largest space is dedicated to the Royal Italian Air Force, where an operational fighter squadron in North Africa is recreated. Continuing along the indicated path, we find a series of armoured vehicles, whose presence is justified by the intention to recreate an operational theatre, that of North Africa, which saw collaboration between ground and air forces develop. There is also a fully equipped field hospital, with tents, an ambulance, and a kitchen, and a space dedicated to the Co-belligerent Air Force.
The “1950s Portal” is dedicated to the years of rebirth, a time when the nation grew and prospered, experiencing an economic boom. The Royal Aeronautica became the Air Force, and the two aircraft that best represented it during those years, holding a special place in Italian memories, were the FIAT G.91 of the Frecce Tricolori and the F-104 Starfighter. This section displays numerous aircraft: trainers (basic and advanced), liaison, combat, helicopters, and drones. At the end of the exhibition, before the final portal, visitors enter an area set up by the 3rd Wing of the Air Force, simulating a modern forward operating base.
The last portal of CAMP 100, introduces us to 2023, the centenary year. Once through it, there is a reproduction of the F-35 (1:1 scale), also perfectly superimposed on its graphic reproduction drawn on the ground and which is part of the gigantic geoglyph depicting the Italian Air Force's Centenary logo.
