Lt. Col. Paola Verde, serving at the Pratica di Mare Aeronautical and Space Experimental Flight Department, awarded at the Protomoteca Hall in the Capitol
Sala della Protomoteca in Rome's Capitoline Museums, the award ceremony took place “Ladies” Event”, addressed to prominent figures in Politics, Defence, Research, Culture, Society, Sport, and Entertainment.
The event, organised by’Women's Event Association, sponsored by the European Parliament, the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, and the Lazio Region, now in its fifth edition and dedicated to the journalist and television presenter Maurizio Costanzo, aims to recognise individuals or organisations who have contributed to the human and social growth of women, including Senator Maria Elisabetta Alberti Casellati, the first female President of the Senate.
This year, the Patronage Committee wished to honour the Lieutenant Colonel Paola Verde within the Defence sector “for the extraordinary contribution made to the research of aeronautical and space medicine, in particular for studies on gender differences in an operational environment and on pilot orientation methods, the model of which could help to understand and combat diseases such as Alzheimer's”.
Lieutenant Colonel Paola Verde is a Investigational Medical Officer who serves at the Aeronautical and Space Medicine Department (ASMD) of DASAS and leads, along with a team of Medical Officers and Healthcare Specialists, research in the aerospace sector aimed at experimenting and verifying techniques on aeronautical apparatus, electromedical devices, and on-board and wearable equipment.
The R.M.A.S. is the only Italian military organisation authorised to’Aerophysiological training of flight personnel. It organises and conducts courses ranging from initial or basic courses, which represent the first introduction for aircrew to the pathophysiology of flight, to advanced courses for experienced personnel or staff from external bodies. The R.M.A.S. also serves as a reference point for the national scientific community in the field of aerospace medicine, as evidenced by numerous scientific collaboration reports with academia and research institutions. On an international level, it can boast the participation of several Medical Officers in international working groups on topics of great interest in the aeromedical sector, such as’Aircrew neck pain or unexplained physiological events, as well as the production of scientific works published in foreign journals and participation in training and updating courses abroad.
D.A.S.A.S. represents the first and only example in Italy of the rationalisation and centralisation into a single structure of individual study and experimentation centres dependent on an Armed Force. An organisation that, in synergy with national and international aeronautical excellences, carries out study, experimentation, testing, technical-operational evaluation, and research support activities for new aeronautical weapon systems, also for the benefit of other Armed Forces and/or State Armed Corps, when requested.
The Air Department for Aeronautical and Space Experimentation also provides technical-logistical, administrative, and operational support to Air Force Entities/Departments located on the airport site, as well as to Entities of other Armed Forces and State Armed Corps present. Finally, it ensures the services necessary for the safe and effective conduct of flight activities and the management of activities related to the reception, embarkation, and disembarkation of personnel, materials, and means arriving at and departing from Pratica di Mare airport.
