The restoration was carried out entirely by personnel from the 3rd Storm Support Operations Wing in Villafranca. The ceremony, which began with honors for the Fallen and the laying of a wreath by the Commander of the 3rd Storm Operations Wing in Villafranca (VR), Colonel Roberto Poni, took place in the presence of numerous civil and military authorities, including the former Chief of Staff of the Italian Air Force, Air Force General Basilio Cottone, the Chief of the Weapons Role and Commander of the Rome Air Force Command, Air Force General Mario Martinelli, the President of the 3rd Wing, Air Force Brigadier General Corrado Dudine, the Mayor of Villafranca, Mario Faccioli, and the Mayor of Povegliano Veronese, Anna Maria Bigon.
The restoration of the RF-84F aircraft, one of the few remaining examples, was carried out entirely on site by personnel from the 3rd Stormo Support Operative Wing, who ensured the high-level and diverse professional skills required, while the positioning of the aircraft was also made possible thanks to the collaboration of the 27th Group of Artillery Engineers based nearby.
The number of the wheelchair, identifying the Squadron and the Group to which it belongs, has kept the “3” and the “178” has been chosen as the sum of the Flight Groups that have made the history of the Squadron, namely the 18th, the 28th and the 132nd Group.
The original livery was retained for the fuselage, while for the color of the entry edge of the vertical rudder and the tips of the wings, since they are different depending on the Group to which they belong, the red of the 132nd Squadron was chosen for the tip of the right wing, the green of the 18th for the left wing and the yellow of the 28th for the entry edge of the vertical rudder.
The name of the pilot, reported as tradition dictates under the canopy, was chosen from that of Brigadier General Luciano Nimis, Commander of the then 3rd Tactical Reconnaissance Air Brigade of Villafranca, from 1957 to 1959, and also the first President of the “Third Circle” Association, founded in 1997.
The first Thunderflash aircraft arrived in Italy in 1954 and were assigned to the 3rd Fighter Wing from Bari Palese, which officially settled in Villafranca on July 1st of the same year, initially in the Thunderjet version and later in the Thunderflash version.
The RF-84F Thunderflash aircraft, produced by the American Republic Aviation Corporation starting in 1951, was a single-engine, jet-powered reconnaissance aircraft with a V-shaped wing. It made its first flight in 1953 and was delivered to the Flight Departments starting in March 1954. An evolution of the previous F-84F Thunderstreak was also designed for reconnaissance photo missions, with the bow cone housing the photographic equipment.
Of the 715 RF-84F Thunderflash aircraft built, 386 were used by the Air Forces of nine NATO member countries; the 78 received by the Air Force were assigned exclusively to the Flight Groups at Villafranca, where they were used until 1974.
