On Wednesday 13th April, the ceremony between Colonel Presicce, outgoing Commander, and Colonel Cantiello, incoming Commander, took place in the presence of Major General Draghi. Colonel Francesco Presicce, after about two and a half years, has relinquished command of the RSV, to be transferred to the Air Force Staff as Head of the 2nd Office of the 4th Department. Colonel Maurizio Cantiello, from the same Department of the Staff, has taken over the role. Both Colonel Presicce, from the ‘Drago IV’ course, and Colonel Cantiello, from the ‘Grifo IV’ course, come from operational lines, interceptor fighter the first and bomber fighter the second, and after serving in their original operational departments, they spent a long period as test pilots and experimenters at the RSV, both holding the positions of Flight Commander, Commander of the 311th Flight Group, and Head of Operations Office of the Flight Experimental Department. Colonel Presicce, in his farewell speech, highlighted how the Department has been renewed and transformed in its mode of operation, in the various activities carried out, particularly those related to the implementation of technological solutions for new operational requirements, those resulting from activities connected to ’Operational Test and Evaluation', and those aimed, in general, at improving the operational capabilities of the Armed Force.
Colonel Cantiello, on taking up the position of Commander of the RSV, emphasised his intention to lead, in continuity with his predecessors, a Department that can become ever leaner and more responsive to the Armed Force's requests. This Department will operate with the necessary flexibility to meet the needs of operational units, all in harmony with analogous sectors of the other Armed Forces and in a spirit of calm collaboration with the industrial sector. The RSV is tasked with supporting the operational units of the Air Force through the experimentation, testing, validation, and optimisation of new weapon systems, or those undergoing modification or integration within Armed Force technical facilities. It is also responsible for issuing or optimising initial deployment procedures, as well as providing initial training for Flying Units. Recently, the RSV, also in response to the changing geopolitical, social, and economic context, has significantly boosted activities in support of operational units, essentially through the instrument of operational technical certification, which allows for the rapid and autonomous implementation of technological solutions capable of meeting new requirements in operational theatres.
This area most recently includes new capabilities in the field of aerial refuelling, reconnaissance and communications for the AM-X, precision cargo dropping from C-130J aircraft, optimisation of the self-protection system for the C-27J, as well as in the technological demonstration sector for new capabilities to be acquired. The RSV also operates for the benefit of other Armed Forces and State Armed Corps, and bodies of the General Secretariat of Defence/National Directorate of Armaments. Among these recently implemented activities are the introduction of the tactical data-link and the ROVER video data transmission system on the EH-101 helicopter for the Navy, as well as the experimentation of a volcanic particle detection capability in the atmosphere, in close collaboration with the National Research Centre, on the C-27J aircraft. Lately, the RSV has completed the development of an instrument trainer for the SF-260 aircraft and, also in the advanced simulation sector, engineering activities in support of the Armed Force's Modelling & Simulation capability, which represents the state of the art in advanced technologies.
