Thursday 10 December: celebrations at Air Force units in Italy and abroad – Non-Commissioned Officers“ Advanced Training School and Foreign Languages School – Loreto – Maj. Roberto Visintin In keeping with a long-standing tradition, throughout Italy on Thursday 10 December, the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, patron saint of the Italian Air Force, was celebrated. To mark this occasion in Naples, on the initiative of the Command of the Air Force Academy in Pozzuoli (Naples), a solemn Mass was celebrated in the Church of San Francesco di Paola in Piazza del Plebiscito, officiated by Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Archbishop of Naples. During his homily, Cardinal Sepe urged all airmen to aim high in life with their hearts. The religious service, attended by numerous local dignitaries, concluded with the recitation of the ”Aviator’s Prayer“. Air Force Academy – Pozzuoli (Naples) – Maj. Emilio Centrella On Thursday 10 December, the 16th Wing based in Martina Franca (Taranto) celebrated the feast day of Our Lady of Loreto, dear to all airmen as the patron saint of the Italian Air Force. The Eucharistic ceremony was presided over by the rector of the Basilica of San Martino, Monsignor Franco Semeraro, in the Wing’s chapel. The event was attended by all the leading local military, religious and civil authorities, including the Mayor of Martina Franca, Dr Franco Palazzo. At the end of the religious service, attention turned to the area where the 16th Wing’s grounds had been refurbished, where the statue representing Our Lady of Loreto is situated; it was unveiled by the Mayor of Martina Franca and blessed by Monsignor Semeraro. The celebrations marking the feast day of the ”Black‘ Madonna had already begun on Wednesday 9 December, when the effigy of Our Lady of Loreto was welcomed into the Basilica of San Martino, accompanied by a large contingent of military personnel from the 16th Wing who, together with members of the Martina Franca branch of UNITALSI, followed it in procession through the streets of the town centre. Colonel Paolo Citta, Commander of the Wing, stated during his address that ’I am particularly pleased to be able to celebrate “our‘ patron saint together with representatives of the people of Martina Franca; the greatest privilege is to be able to do so on this day and in this ’special‘ year, which marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Air Force’s presence in Martina Franca. ’My heartfelt thanks,’ Colonel Citta continued, ”go to the rector of the Basilica of St Martin and to the Unitalsi association, thanks to whom it has been possible to obtain and welcome the statue of Our Lady of Loreto right in the heart of Martina Franca. ‘Today, at last, we are giving our patron saint a more fitting home, one worthy of the importance she holds for all of us airmen.’ The 16th Wing is thus celebrating ’its‘ beloved patron saint for the second time in 2009. On 8 September 2009, the 16th Wing of Martina Franca, during the celebrations for the Nativity of the Virgin in Loreto itself, received the ’Targa Città di Loreto” award as the Italian Air Force unit that had distinguished itself in 2008 for its work. Monsignor Franco Semeraro said he was ‘honoured and delighted to be able to celebrate the patron saint of all aviators right here in their own midst.’ ‘Last night, during the procession and the religious service, I could see just how closely you men in ’blue” are bound to Our Lady of Loreto, and I would interpret the rain that fell as an affectionate greeting bestowed upon us by the “Black Madonna“.” The prelate then turned his attention to the airmen who bring peace outside Italy and in Afghanistan, invoking the patron saint to ”bring peace to those tormented lands and always protect our “men” engaged in this extremely difficult task“. The celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the Air Force’s presence in Martina Franca drew to a close on the evening of Sunday 13 December, with the ”Christmas Concert“ performed by the Military Aviation Schools Command/III Air Region Band of Bari, presented to all the citizens of Martina Franca in the splendid setting of the Basilica of San Martino. 16th Wing – Martina Franca (Taranto) – Lt Massimo Battista On Thursday 10 December, to mark the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, a solemn ceremony was held at the ”Luigi Rovelli“ military airport – home to the 32nd Wing – in honour of Our Lady of Loreto, Patron Saint of the Italian Air Force, in the presence of numerous civil and military authorities. For the occasion, the Archbishop of Manfredonia, Vieste and San Giovanni Rotondo, Monsignor Michele Castoro, visited the 32nd Wing and met with the personnel on duty. ”On the feast day of Our Lady of Loreto, I wish the Commander and the entire 32nd Wing the continued protection of the Virgin Mary as they carry out their vital mission, whilst I invoke a special blessing upon their families.“ With these words, Monsignor Castoro expressed his appreciation for this special occasion, which, just a few months after his installation in the new diocese, had enabled him to become acquainted with the important role played by the 32nd Wing. The celebration also provided an opportunity for a charity initiative aimed at meeting the needs of many families in difficulty. In this regard, the proceeds from a fundraising campaign organised by the Wing’s personnel were symbolically presented to the Archbishop during the day. This initiative, named ”Cuore con le ali“ (Heart with Wings) and promoted by the Commander of the 32nd Wing, Colonel Fabio Giunchi, was intended to demonstrate the solidarity of the wider military aviation family with the social issues facing the local area, with the aim of helping families in need. 32nd Wing – Amendola (Foggia) – Lt Col Francesco De Marco On Thursday 10 December, Monsignor Francesco Miccichè, Bishop of Trapani, celebrated Holy Mass at St Lawrence’s Cathedral in Trapani to mark the feast day of Our Lady of Loreto, patron saint of the Italian Air Force. The ceremony was attended by the Prefect, the Mayor of Trapani and the province’s leading civil and military authorities, together with a large contingent of personnel from the 37th Wing and the organisations operating at Livio Bassi Military Airport, as well as members of the Trapani and Marsala branches of the Air Force Association. Before the religious service, the military chaplain of the Trapani unit, Father Salvatore Falzone, summarised the activities carried out over the course of the year by the Wing’s personnel for the benefit of the local community, the most recent of which was the ”Food Collection“, and concluded his address with a moving tribute to the five colleagues who lost their lives on 23 November in Pisa. At the end of the ceremony, Lieutenant Colonel Salvatore Ferrara read the ”Aviator’s Prayer“, and finally Colonel Bruno Strozza, Commander of the 37th Wing, read the order of the day signed by Air Force General Daniele Tei, Chief of the General Staff of the Italian Air Force. According to tradition, the house in which Jesus lived was miraculously lifted by angels who, on a very long flight, carried it from Nazareth first to Dalmatia and subsequently, in 1294, to a deserted hill covered in laurel trees, hence the future name, ”Lauretum”, later Loreto. The belief in this miraculous transfer prompted Pope Benedict XV to declare the Blessed Virgin of Loreto ”the principal patroness before God of all aviators’. 37th Wing – Trapani – Lt Col Gianluca Di Battista The feast day of Our Lady of Loreto, Patron Saint of all aviators, was solemnly celebrated on Thursday 10 December by the 41st Anti-Submarine Warfare Wing at Sigonella. The service took place in Catania Cathedral, in the presence of the Wing Commander, Colonel Luca Tonello, senior military and civilian authorities, and base personnel. The ceremony was officiated by the 1st Military Chaplain, Don Giovanni Salvia, who, in his homily, recalled how our patronal feast day had been “marked by a tragic event in which the crew of the C-130J aircraft from the 46th Air Brigade in Pisa lost their lives on Monday 23 November: Major Bruno Cavezzana, Second Lieutenant Gianluca Minichino, Second Lieutenant Salvatore Bidello, Sergeant Maurizio Ton and Sergeant Gianluca Làrice. We remember them, offer prayers for their souls, and extend our wholehearted sympathy to the families struck by such profound grief. This Marian feast day is linked to the tradition that the shrine venerated at Loreto is the Virgin Mary’s home in Nazareth. This small biblical shrine, having fallen into Muslim hands, was first moved to Tarsatto in Dalmatia (1291), then to the woods of Recanati and finally to Loreto (1295). Pope Benedict XV, responding to the wishes of the pilots of the First World War (1914–1918), proclaimed Our Lady of Loreto the Heavenly Patroness of all Aviators by Papal Brief dated 24 March 1920….Best wishes to our Air Force, and let us invoke the intercession of Our Lady of Loreto upon us all, that she may protect all her children”. 41st Anti-Submarine Wing – Sigonella – Lt Col Rocco Massimo Zaffarana On Thursday 10 December, a Holy Mass was held in honour of Our Lady of Loreto, Patroness of the Italian Air Force and of all aviators, at the Church of St Thomas at the Pantheon in Syracuse. The service, presided over by the Archbishop of Syracuse, Monsignor Salvatore Pappalardo, assisted by Father Giovanni Salvia, Military Chaplain, was attended by the Prefect of Syracuse, Carmela Floreno Vacirca, the Commander of Marisicilia, Rear Admiral Andrea Toscano, and the pri
