Today at the “G. Farina” military airport in Decimomannu (CA), headquarters of the International Flight Training School (IFTS), the “Delivery of Patents” ceremony took place. It was an occasion dedicated to the trainee pilots who have completed their training at the Flight Schools of the Air Force.
The event was attended by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, the Minister of Defence, Guido Crosetto, and numerous civil, military and religious authorities, demonstrating the significance and prestige of the occasion. The event was also attended by Professor Roberto Cingolani, CEO and General Manager of Leonardo.
During the ceremony, 16 trainees, a handpicked representation from the most deserving of all classes, received the patent. Those who received the “Military Pilot Patent” were trainees from the Air Force and the Air Forces of Austria, Germany, Greece and Singapore. Additionally, the “Military Helicopter Pilot Patent” was handed to the trainees of the Italian Army, the Carabinieri and the Guardia di Finanza. The “Helicopter Pilot Patent” was bestowed upon the students of the State Police and the National Fire Brigade.
“Mr. President of the Republic, your presence today, as in many other occasions, is a source of honour and confidence for us: it is a tangible sign of the attention that you consistently dedicate to the Armed Forces, their commitment and their daily sacrifice. Today is a special day, especially for the young pilots who today receive the Turreted Eagle: a moment that will remain indelible in their memory. Alongside the Italian trainee pilots here today are foreign colleagues who have completed their training at the flight schools of the Air Force. A recognition of Italian excellence in flight training, the result of a modern and forward-looking vision that has made Italy a model at an international level. The Turreted Eagle we give today is more than just a symbol: it represents the undertaking of a specific responsibility. The one of embodying and defending the foundational values of the collective defence of our Country, Italy, respecting the laws and the Constitution. To them, to you, Italy entrusts not only cutting-edge aircraft, but a forward-looking vision, both projected into the future: exceptional training in technology, culture, and humanity, based on innovation and international cooperation. A concrete example is the school hosting us today – the International Flight Training School (IFTS) – a campus recognized worldwide as a benchmark for the quality and modernity of its training model. This is what Defence represents and must represent: to fulfil its primary mission – to defend free institutions, democracy and ensure the security of citizens. Defence also contributes to building the future, representing a formidable engine of development, a technological lever, a driving force for innovation and qualified and sustainable employment. A sector capable of generating otherwise unattainable investments as well as considerable returns on a social, industrial, occupational and technological level.”
“Today we entrust to you, young pilots, complex technologies, which few can govern, but which will be fundamental to protect everyone’s future. However, no matter how sophisticated, no technology will ever be able to replace what we celebrate today: judgement, responsibility, conscience, ethical sense and moral drive. No machine will ever be able to feel, calculate and evaluate the weight of a choice nor have, within it, the moral strength of a sworn oath. And this is why your mission becomes and remains fundamental: we do not just entrust you with exceptional, cutting-edge instruments, but the most delicate task of all: to interpret new scenarios, to always have the strength to discern between Good and Evil as to always choose good in the interest of the Country.” Said the Minister of Defence Guido Crosetto during his speech.
In his speech, the Chief of Defence Staff, General of the Army Corps Luciano Portolano, underscored the profound significance of the ceremony, which represents a moment of personal growth and the beginning of a new mission, in which to demonstrate that one can be both a leader and a “guardian of an art that combines and fuses technique and strategy, intuition and rationality, action and reflection.” He also congratulated the newly qualified from the Air Forces of Austria, Germany, Greece and Singapore, who attended IFTS. Gen. Portolano highlighted the importance of international cooperative effort in facing modern security challenges: “In military operations, including air operations, friendly countries, allies and partners, operate side by side, demonstrating in practice that defence has no borders, […] that peace and security are built together.”
Recognizing the indispensable role of support played by new technologies, first and foremost artificial intelligence – now fully integrated into the operational landscape to predict threats and optimize missions and military operations – General Portolano wanted to remind everyone that it is the human being who remains, today and in the future, the decisive factor, and that no machine, device or weapon system will be able to “replace your intuition and your initiative” or interpret complex and unforeseen situations, as “no algorithm will be able to make decisions with full awareness of their ethical and moral implications.”
Concluding his speech, General Portolano urged the newly licensed never to forget the responsibility that accompanies the “Eagles” they just received, stressing the importance of becoming defenders of the values and safety of democracy, and ambassadors of a cooperative, ethical and strategic approach aimed at the defence and security of Nations and Peoples.
The Chief of Air Force Staff, Air Force General Antonio Conserva, in taking the floor at the start of the ceremony, after thanking the President of the Republic, the Minister of Defence and all the authorities and guests who attended, wanted to underline the contribution of the key players who made the organization of the event possible, in particular the School Command, the Logistic Command and the AM Command for the Autonomous Region of Sardinia (CAMRAS), who through the Experimental Department and Standardization to Air Shooting (RSSTA) supported the preparations on the base.
“The young officers who become pilots today have faced a particularly challenging process at national and foreign flight schools.” – said General Conserva, who then continued – “Today they crown the dream of their professional life.” Referring to the international geo-political framework, he highlighted how “Defence and the Air Force have the task of maintaining the highest level of operational readiness of their assets, also through the ability to train pilots who ensure the highest quality standards, in order to guarantee the defence of Italian and allied skies, and an adequate level of deterrence capable of safeguarding peace in every context.” The Chief of the Air Force Staff then emphasized the inter-force and international nature of the training model offered: “The inter-force, inter-agency and international dimension is the concrete proof of how the more than a century-long experience of the Air Force and its distinctive competences in the aerospace sector are shared, in a spirit of effective and concrete collaboration between institutions and allies, in favour of those who make flight their profession and those who aspire to operate in aerospace. Today’s event is particularly significant because the International Flight Training School is a model of innovative and virtuous institutional and industrial synergy, which thanks also to the hospitality of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia, is capable of creating value by pooling the consolidated know-how of the Air Force and the excellence of the national industry, with the contribution of Defence Services, an in-house company of Defence.”
The licensed pilots attended their respective piloting courses at the Air Force Schools, recognized for their training excellence: the 61st Stormo, based at the airport of Lecce Galatina, the 72nd Stormo, based at the airport of Frosinone, and the Aerial Transport Training School (SATA) in Pratica di Mare. The licensed in today’s ceremony are part of a larger group of 67 students – belonging to the Air Force, foreign Air Forces and other Armed Forces and Armed and non-State Bodies – who have completed, the journey to achieve the pilot’s license at the mentioned flight schools (Galatina, Frosinone and Pratica di Mare). These students will receive the patent at the respective Air Force schools.
The choice of holding this ceremony at the International Flight Training School in Decimomannu, a leading international hub in the field of advanced flight training, carries a strong symbolic value. It is the result of a significant synergy at the level of the Country System between the Air Force and Leonardo and represents, precisely because of its connotation as an international school, a strong message of cooperation between different countries and cultures.
The licensed military pilot students and selected for the “fighter” lines, after completing stages II and III, continue their training process with Stage IV, called “Lead In to Fighter Training – LIFT”, which takes place precisely at Decimomannu, at the International Flight Training School (IFTS).
Source and photo credit @Aeronautica Militare-General Staff/5°Communication Department-Public Information Office
