After almost ninety years, the Fiat AS.6 engine of the MC-72 was started up at the Air Force heliport, which was previously the headquarters of the High-Speed Department, where Marshal Agello set the speed record.
Via from the propellers! Contact! With these words, Commander of the 6th Air Wing, Colonel Luca Giuseppe Vitaliti, gave the “via” at the event to start the racing engine FIAT AS.6. After almost ninety years, it has returned to roaring on the deck of the Hydroplane Base of the Air Force, which was previously the headquarters of the High-Speed Department, the AS6 engine, assembled to equip the hydrocorse Macchi Castoldi 72, With which, on October 23, 1934, Marshal Francesco Agello set the record for speed for piston-powered seaplanes, with a speed of 709.209 km/h.
The event took place as part of the activities related to the celebrations of the Centenary of the Italian Air Force, thanks to the collaboration between the 6th Wing by Ghedi and the City of Desenzano del Garda, with the valuable support of MUSAM, Historical Museum of the Air Force in Vigna di Valle, near Rome.
It Commander of the 6th Air Wing, Colonel Luca Giuseppe Vitaliti, During his intervention, he retraced all the stages of the long journey that preceded this exciting day, from the ambitious initial project to the careful planning of the preparatory activities, until the initiative took shape thanks to the success of the restoration and entered the execution phase. A project certainly wanted and pursued by “passionate dreamers”, realized thanks to the synergies put in place, starting with the 6th Squadron, from the Historical Museum of the Italian Air Force in Vigna di Valle, which, by institutional mandate, has the task of building and passing on the heritage that our country preserves in the field of military aviation, and by the Cultural Association “The Magnete”, The master of a unique restoration on the Italian scene, but also on the international scene. Continuing, approaching the record-breaking engine, he added:“… one of the countless milestones achieved by the Italian Air Force over these 100 years. The AS6 is an engine that has enabled the achievement of a record of speed that remains unmatched to this day; a propulsion system that solved countless technical problems limiting the maximum power output with ingenious solutions, and that has enabled, in addition to achieving a record of speed, to leave a legacy for the global technological heritage that has been passed on to the automotive and industrial sectors, allowing performance and efficiency to be enhanced with results that have greatly improved the quality of our lives and supported the growth and development of our country.
The solemn flag-raising ceremony and the laying of the wreath at the graves of the fallen High-Speed Department She was represented by General of the Air Force Silvano Frigerio, Commander of the Schools and the 3rd Air Region based in Bari. Moreover, the event saw the participation of the Commander of the 6th Air Wing, Col. Luca Giuseppe Vitaliti, the Mayor of the City of Desenzano del Garda, Arch. Guido Malinverno, and a representative of “The Red Devils”, Hundreds of enthusiasts and family members of the personnel who served on the High-Speed Department. All those present were able to visit the extraordinary museum area, set up in the original hangars of the Desenzano base, equipped with numerous memorabilia dating back to the famous “Schneider Cup” and “High-Speed Department”. The event continued with very interesting lectures on historical and aeronautical topics that culminated at the moment of the engine’s start-up by the team from the restoration company.’Cultural Association “The Magnete”, led by Mr. Leonardo Sordi who, in the margins of his activity, emphasized: “It was very emotional to bring the AS6 back to life and it is even more emotional to bring it back to life here, at its home base, the Idroscalo, the place where these engines ran and developed until they became legendary. The restoration of the record engine was an intense, exciting, ambitious project that took me two years with many hours of work, approximately 5500 hours of diagnosis, historical research, cleaning and fitting missing components and final reassembly. An indescribable emotion.”.
Furthermore, the Lieutenant Colonel Arturo Alfredo Caccetta, Director of the Historical Museum of the Military Air Force (MUSAM) of Vigna di Valle, reminded the present that on the occasion of the activities related to the hundredth anniversary of the AM, the“MUSAM” It underwent a profound renovation, which affected all the spaces, such as the hypogeum, the underground structure of historical interest, the ticket office, the common areas and, above all, the exhibition areas. The MUSAM, which covers approximately 16,000 square meters, according to an estimate made by journalists and specialized photographers in the field, is one of the most beautiful and important military museums in the world, a true pride for the Navy and for Italy.“The precious FIAT AS6 engine restored will also be exhibited to the public at other celebrations; it is one of the two that were prepared by FIAT to equip the Macchi Castoldi 72 hydroplane. The record-breaking one is still aboard the original aircraft, beautifully preserved inside our Museum in Vigna di Valle. We invite you to visit our vast collection, which includes unique collections and enviable aircraft.”.
Commander Vitaliti, at the end of the exciting day, reminded everyone of the words of Colonel Mario Bernasconi, Commander of the High-Speed Department on that record afternoon, On October 23, 1934, famous and exceptional for the history of Italian aviation: “That afternoon of October 23, 1934, the sky was gray; a faint mist made visibility difficult; the lake, however, appeared well-creamy and the wind was calm. The pilot, seated on the MC-72, started the engine and launched into a great flight. The hydroplane, with its powerful and resounding roar, excited the echo of the mountains surrounding the Garda, almost calling the spirits of many heroic speed flyers, who had fallen so that he could succeed victoriously and give the homeland, Italy, greater honor and more admirable prestige.”.
The 6th Squadron “Alfredo Fusco” It has the task of acquiring and maintaining the ability to conduct interdiction operations, reconnaissance, and support for surface forces, electronic reconnaissance, and aerial support against targets related to hostile or enemy forces.
Contribute to the defense of Italian skies and the Atlantic Alliance with specific operational capabilities and state-of-the-art technology. Ensures the operational conversion and standardization of the flight crews assigned to the Tornado IDS/ECR line.
It collaborates with the civil authorities in emergency relief operations in the event of disasters and/or natural calamities.
It depends hierarchically Combat Forces Command (CFC) based in Milan, which in turn depends on Air Squadron Command (CSA) based in Palazzo Aeronautica in Rome.
