On December 9th and 10th, at the Sanctuary of the Holy House in Loreto, celebrations were held in honour of the Patron Saint of the Italian Air Force, which saw the participation of Chief of the Air Staff, Gen. S.A. Antonio Conserva, accompanied by the Commanders of the Armed Forces' top units and numerous military and civilian authorities.
The celebrations began on the evening of December 9th with the traditional affiliation with the celestial Patroness of the VI FALCO Course of the Air Force Academy, in the presence of the Commander of the training institution., Air Division General Davide Cipelletti. Following the usual vigil presided over by His Excellency Monsignor Fabio Dal Cin, Archbishop Prelate of Loreto and Pontifical Delegate for the Holy House, concluded with the procession of the sacred effigy of the Blessed Virgin of Loreto, carried on the shoulders by the cadets of the Academy.
On the morning of December 10th, the celebrations continued with the solemn Eucharistic Celebration presided over by the’Military Ordinary, Most Reverend Monsignor Gian Franco Saba, and from Episcopal Vicar for the Air Force, Don Antonio Coppola.
During the celebration Monsignor Saba he remembered how “In the world of Aeronautics, it's important to know what a waypoint is, a specific geographical position: having a point of reference. No one can depart without a clear destination in mind. The Spirit of God meets Mary, offering her a destination, the destination of actively participating in God's plan. Not infrequently, the flights on which you will find yourselves acting and operating – then continued – they will be genuine rescue flights, and all of this is nothing more than a concrete and real extension of the help that Mary was able to bring to humanity by making herself available to the action of the Holy Spirit.”
After the Eucharistic celebration, the General Store He spoke to thank everyone present, but particularly H.E. Msgr. Dal Cin for the hospitality and the opportunity to celebrate the Patron Saint at the Holy House. “I shall take your words, Monsignor, from when you welcomed me yesterday, saying... – This is your home – .... it is our spiritual home that binds us to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Loreto, our patroness.” He then reminded all present staff of the Armed Force's important institutional role in defending our country's skies and in contributing to preserving international peace and stability, especially in this particular historical moment.
The celebrations concluded with the traditional blessing of the Air Force aircraft outside the churchyard, followed by a flypast in honour of the Patron Saint by a formation composed of two Eurofighter Typhoons from the 36th Wing of Gioia del Colle and two Lockheed Martin F-35s from the 32nd Wing of Amendola.
It Aviation English Training Centre It depends on the Air Force Schools Command / 3rd Air Region of Bari and is responsible for the training and assessment of language skills of Air Force personnel, as well as the assessment and teaching of “Aviation English” to flight controllers, Air Force flight crew, and personnel belonging to other Armed Forces and Ministries.
