The ''Frecce Tricolori'' (; literally "Tricolour Arrows"), officially known as the ''313° Gruppo Addestramento Acrobatico, Pattuglia Acrobatica Nazionale (PAN) Frecce Tricolori'' ("313th Acrobatic Training Group, National Aerobatic Team (PAN) Frecce Tricolori"), is the
aerobatic
Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glid ...
demonstration team of the
Italian Air Force
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march = (Ordinance March of the Air Force) by Alberto Di Miniello
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 28 March ...
. Based at
Rivolto Air Base,
province of Udine
The province of Udine ( it, provincia di Udine, fur, provincie di Udin, sl, videmska pokrajina, Resian dialect, Resian: , german: Provinz Weiden) was a Provinces of Italy, province in the autonomous region Friuli-Venezia Giulia of Italy, borderi ...
, it was created on 1 March 1961 as a permanent group for the training of Air Force pilots in air acrobatics.
The Tricolour Arrows replaced unofficial teams that had been sponsored by various commands starting in the early 1930s.
[Aeronautica Militare official site](_blank)
/ref> The team flies the Aermacchi MB-339-A/PAN, a two-seat fighter-trainer craft capable of 898 km/h at sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...
.[ Caliaro 2005, p. 25] With ten aircraft, nine in close formation and a soloist, they are the world's largest acrobatics patrol, and their flight schedule, comprising about twenty acrobatics and about half an hour, made them the most famous in the world.[ Caliaro 2005, p. 25.] It is one of national symbols of Italy
National symbols of Italy are the symbols that uniquely identify Italy reflecting its history and culture. They are used to represent the Nation through emblems, metaphors, personifications, allegories, which are shared by the entire Italian pe ...
.
History
Previous patrols
In Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
the first acrobatic flight school was founded in 1930 at the Udine-Campoformido Airport on the initiative of Colonel Rino Corso Fougier
Rino Corso Fougier (14 November 1894 in Bastia – 24 April 1963 in Rome) was a general of the Italian Royal Air Force. From 1940 to 1941 he served as the commander of the Corpo Aereo Italiano which, in concert with the Luftwaffe, took part in the ...
, commander of the 1st Fighter Wing
In military aviation, a wing is a unit of command. In most military aviation services, a wing is a relatively large formation of planes. In Commonwealth countries a wing usually comprises three squadrons, with several wings forming a group ( ...
: the first formation consisted of five Fiat C.R.20 and already on 8 June 1930 at first air show, called "Wing Day", these planes performed in a "bomb", a figure similar to the current bomb.
In the years before the World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
the patrol of the ''Regia Aeronautica
The Italian Royal Air Force (''Regia Aeronautica Italiana'') was the name of the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946. In 1946, the monarchy was abolis ...
'' participated in various events (to note is that in 1932 Breda Ba.19 was used, in 1934 Fiat CR.30 and from 1936 Fiat CR.32), among which in 1938 the inauguration of the Milan-Linate Airport during which the Chief Patrol was Bruno Sartori, Silver Medal of Military Valor
The Silver Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia d'argento al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry.
Italian medals for valor were first instituted by Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia on 21 May 1793, with a gold medal, and, below it, ...
.
After the inevitable parenthesis of the 1939-1945 period the acrobatic patrol was dissolved and reformed after the war, even if not officially classified as an acrobatic patrol. It was in fact the 51st Fighter Wing, equipped with US P-51D Mustang and British Spitfire Mk.IX aircraft, the first to perform with three Spitfires at Padua Airport in September 1947. The enthusiasm of these pilots was soon followed by some of their colleagues of the 5th Wing, which formed another aerobatic team based on Spitfire aircraft.
In 1950 a patrol called ''Cavallino Rampante'' (Prancing Horse) formed, consisting of four pilots of the 4th Wing equipped with D.H.100 Vampire aircraft. In parallel with this department, in 1953 the ''Guizzo'' (Wriggle) was established, coming from the 5th Wing and operating on F-84G Thunderjet
The Republic F-84 Thunderjet was an American turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 first flew in 1946. Although it entered service in 1947, the Thu ...
aircraft. This unit participated by gaining considerable success at various shows throughout Europe, thanks also to the return of the acrobatic maneuver called "bomb": the four pilots at the top of a looping in formation swooped down in opposite directions, calling the plane only near the ground. The notoriety of Guizzo grew to such an extent that in 1955 he was given a film called ''The four of the thundering jet'' (in honor of the Thunderjet), and it was thanks to this film that the department officially changed its name to ''Getti Tonanti'' (Thundering Jets), continuing to perform until 1956, when they were replaced by the ''Tigri Bianche'' (White Tigers) of the 51st Fighter Wing, always mounted on F-84G.
After a successful year, this new acrobatic team gave way to the reborn ''Cavallino Rampante'' and its new F-86E Saber, which will begin operations on May 19, 1957 at the Turin Airport
Turin Airport ( it, Aeroporto di Torino) , also known as Turin-Caselle Airport (''Aeroporto di Torino-Caselle''), is an international airport located at Caselle Torinese, north-northwest of the city of Turin, in the Metropolitan City of Turin, ...
, reaching its peak with the exhibition at the international exhibition of aeronautics and space in Paris Air Show
The Paris Air Show (french: Salon international de l'aéronautique et de l'espace de Paris-Le Bourget, Salon du Bourget) is a trade fair and air show held in odd years at Paris–Le Bourget Airport in north Paris, France. Organized by the French ...
. Many artistic victories also derived from the fact that, for the first time in Italy, a white smoke generator was used, with which the acrobatic figures were particularly highlighted. 1957 also saw the entry into the scene of two new acrobatic departments: the ''Diavoli Rossi'' (Red Devils) and the ''Lanceri Neri'' (Black Lancers). The former were on staff at the 6th Fighter Wing, and with their F-84F Thunderstreak
The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was an American swept-wing turbojet fighter-bomber. While an evolutionary development of the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet, the F-84F was a new design. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version. ...
they achieved a great consensus among the population, as shown by their tour in the United States of America; the latter instead came from the 2nd Aerobrigata, demonstrating, with the help of the F-86E, great operational ability, which led them to fly also in Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
in 1959 in the presence of the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
, title = Shahanshah Aryamehr Bozorg Arteshtaran
, image = File:Shah_fullsize.jpg
, caption = Shah in 1973
, succession = Shah of Iran
, reign = 16 September 1941 – 11 February 1979
, coronation = 26 October ...
.
In 1959 the Getti Tonanti line-up equipped with F-84F was also reconstituted, whose livery will be modified in 1960 with the five circles of the Olympic flag on the occasion of the 1960 Summer Olympics
The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...
held in Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
.
Birth of the Frecce Tricolori
Towards the end of 1960 it was decided to end this shifting between the various flocks and to found a department whose specific purpose was to form the national aerobatic team, selecting the best pilots of the various departments.
Major Mario Squarcina, leader of the ''Diavoli Rossi'' was thus commissioned by the General Staff of the Italian Air Force to establish the ''Pattuglia Acrobatica Nazionale'' (National Aerobatic Patrol) composed of pilots from all the Air Force departments. The 313th Aerobatic Training Group was founded on 1 March 1961 at the Rivolto Air Base. On the same day, 6 North American F-86 Sabers of the 4th Air Brigade took off from Grosseto to Rivolto. On 1 May 1961 the first official release of the ''Pattuglia Acrobatica Nazionale'' (P.A.N.) with the high program of 4 + 1 F86 Saber on the airport of Trento - Gardolo, on the occasion of the Air Show of the local Aero Club. Unfortunately, three days later, on May 3, there was an incident in flight, during which a pilot died.
The ''Frecce Tricolori'' flew on North American F-86 Sabre
The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing So ...
until 1963. The staff, initially not as numerous as today, was enlarged in 1963 to nine elements plus the soloist, adding the possibility of using colored fumes. The following year the Fiat G.91PAN fighter-bombers arrived, then moved to the current Aermacchi MB-339 A/PAN MLU in 1982.
On 28 August 1988 the PAN was the protagonist of the Ramstein accident, in which three pilots and 67 spectators lost their lives. Two of the three dead pilots, Mario Naldini and Ivo Nutarelli, were supposed to testify at the trial for the Itavia Flight 870
On 27 June 1980, Itavia Flight 870 (IH 870, AJ 421), a McDonnell Douglas DC-9 passenger jet en route from Bologna to Palermo, Italy, crashed into the Tyrrhenian Sea between the islands of Ponza and Ustica, killing all 81 people on board. Known ...
a few days later. This was the cause of various suspicions and conspiracy theories about what happened that day
In 2000 they reached 50,000 flying hours on the Aermacchi MB-339
The Aermacchi MB-339 is a military jet trainer and light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Italian aviation company Aermacchi.
The MB-339 was developed during the 1970s in response to an Italian Air Force requirement that sought a re ...
.
In 2005 they won the award for best exhibition at the Royal International Air Tattoo
The Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) is the world's largest military air show, held annually in July, usually at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, England in support of The Royal Air Force Charitable Trust. The show typically attracts a t ...
at Fairford
Fairford is a town in Gloucestershire, England. The town lies in the Cotswold hills on the River Coln, east of Cirencester, west of Lechlade and north of Swindon. Nearby are RAF Fairford and the Cotswold Water Park.
History
Evidence of ...
, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. They were the first non-Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
unit to receive the Russian Silver Medal for Aeronautical Merit. On 8 September 2007 the ''Frecce Tricolori'' took part at the funeral of Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...
in Modena
Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...
and honoured him with a fly-past
A flypast is a ceremonial or honorific flight by an aircraft or group of aircraft. The term flypast is used in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. In the United States, the terms flyover and flyby are used.
Flypasts are often tied in w ...
leaving green-white-red smoke trails.
The replacement (scheduled for 2017) of the MB-339PAN with Alenia Aermacchi M.345 HET (High Efficiency Trainer), announced in 2013, was blocked in 2014, reconfirmed in 2016 with entry into service scheduled for 2020.
Description
Aircraft features
The livery of the Aermacchi MB-339
The Aermacchi MB-339 is a military jet trainer and light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Italian aviation company Aermacchi.
The MB-339 was developed during the 1970s in response to an Italian Air Force requirement that sought a re ...
used by the Group is given by the characteristic tricolor band that crosses the side of the plane against a savoy blue
Savoy blue or savoy azure ( it, links=no, blu Savoia or ) is a shade of saturated blue between peacock blue and periwinkle, lighter than peacock blue. It owes its name to the fact of being the color of the House of Savoy, a ruling dynasty in th ...
background. The airplane's abdomen is light gray while the formation numbers are yellow stickers. For the classic Aermacchi MB-339 A under the Italian Air Force
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march = (Ordinance March of the Air Force) by Alberto Di Miniello
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 28 March ...
the wingtip tanks were removed for two reasons:
#penalize the acrobatic performance of the aircraft, in particular the fast tonneaux due to a considerable mass placed far from the axis of rotation;
#would make it more difficult to maintain tight formation during acrobatic maneuvers, partially inhibiting the view of the aircraft next to which one is flying and thus depriving the "gregari" of precise reference points for maintaining the position.
Mixed subalary tanks are thus created, containing both vaseline
Vaseline ()Also pronounced with the main stress on the last syllable . is an American brand of petroleum jelly-based products owned by transnational company Unilever. Products include plain petroleum jelly and a selection of skin creams, soa ...
oil for fumes and a certain amount of fuel to partially compensate for the reduction in autonomy caused by the removal of wingtip tanks. Larger subalar fuel tanks (pylon tank), already provided for at the origin, can be installed on the external subaltern pylons for long-range transfer flights. On the occasion of the first cruise in USA-Canada (1986), special cylindrical tip tanks were set up, with a capacity much higher than that of the original elliptical tip-tank. These cylindrical tip tanks, added to the nylon tanks, provide adequate autonomy for large stops in the north Atlantic, allowing even a digression on a possible diversion airport Diversion airports are airports capable of handling a particular ETOPS
ETOPS () is an acronym for ''Extended-range Twin-engine Operations Performance Standards''—a special part of flight rules for one-engine-inoperative flight conditions. The I ...
.
The colored smoke is generated by dispersion
Dispersion may refer to:
Economics and finance
*Dispersion (finance), a measure for the statistical distribution of portfolio returns
*Price dispersion, a variation in prices across sellers of the same item
*Wage dispersion, the amount of variatio ...
, and is composed of vaseline oil to which non-polluting pigments are added. The escape of this compound occurs through a small tube placed in the rear exhaust of the airplane.
Formation
During the performances the formation of the acrobatic patrol is usually composed of 9 aircraft, called "Pony", each labeled with a number ranging from 1 to 10. The name "Pony" was coined by the then Captain Zeno Tascio to remember the horse of Francesco Baracca which is the sign of the 4th Wing, at the time 4th Airbase who was already preparing to take over the task PAN for the 1961. Depending on the needs of the Department, aircraft can also be 11 in total, thus including the figure of the acrobatic training manager.
* Pony 0 - Commander
* Pony 1 - Head of Formation
* Pony 2 - 1° Left Domestique
* Pony 3 - 1° Right Domestique
* Pony 4 - 2° Left Domestique
* Pony 5 - 2° Right Domestique
* Pony 6 - 1° Tail light
* Pony 7 - 3° Left Domestique
* Pony 8 - 3° Right Domestique
* Pony 9 - 2° Tail light
* Pony 10 - Soloist
* Pony 11 - Acrobatic Training Supervisor
* Pony 12 - Pilot in Training
* Pony 13 - Pilot in Training
* Pony 14 - Pilot in Training
* Pony 15 - Pilot in Training
* Pony 16 - Pilot in Training
Flight programs and pilot selection
The ''Frecce Tricolori'' have three programs for performing acrobatics: high, low, and flat, depending on the weather conditions and the characteristics of the exhibition area.[ The high program is chosen when the ]cloud
In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or various other chemicals may co ...
base is above 1,000 m and is characterized by the execution of the acrobatic figures entirely on the vertical plane
Plane(s) most often refers to:
* Aero- or airplane, a powered, fixed-wing aircraft
* Plane (geometry), a flat, 2-dimensional surface
Plane or planes may also refer to:
Biology
* Plane (tree) or ''Platanus'', wetland native plant
* ''Planes' ...
; the low program is preferred instead when the clouds do not exceed 500 – 600 m and vertical maneuvers are not carried out (such as looping or the bomb); finally, the flat variant includes low-level formation maneuvers.
For several years, when possible, the PAN performances have ended with the complete line-up drawing a five km long flag of Italy
The national flag of Italy ( it, Bandiera d'Italia, ), often referred to in Italian as ''il Tricolore'' ( en, the Tricolour, ) is a tricolour (flag), tricolour featuring three equally sized vertical Pale (heraldry), pales of green, white and red, ...
in the sky while from the floor speakers the voice of Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...
intones the finale of ''Nessun dorma
"" (; English: "Let no one sleep") is an aria from the final act of Giacomo Puccini's opera ''Turandot'' (text by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni) and one of the best-known tenor arias in all opera. It is sung by Calaf, (the unknown prince), ...
'' for the entire duration of the passage . The first realization of this maneuver took place in Pratica di Mare (''frazione
A ''frazione'' (plural: ) is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' (municipality) in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidate territ ...
'' of Pomezia
Pomezia () is a municipality (''comune'') in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Lazio, central Italy. In 2009 it had a population of about 60,000.
History
The town was built entirely new near the location of ancient Lavinium on land resulting ...
) during the farewell ceremony at the F-104 Starfighter
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is an American single-engine, supersonic air superiority fighter which was extensively deployed as a fighter-bomber during the Cold War. Created as a day fighter by Lockheed as one of the "Century Series" of fi ...
and this earned the ''Frecce Tricolori'' the world record for the longest national flag ever made. Also for this reason, on September 8, 2007, hurtling through the Modena
Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...
sky, the ''Frecce Tricolori'' paid tribute to Pavarotti whose funeral he had just held.
Only the best pilots have access to the ''Frecce Tricolori'': each year one or two of them are chosen strictly among those who have more than 1,000 flight hours, and once they have entered they must follow a gradual insertion training program.
Incidents
Below is a list of the accidents that occurred to the pilots of the ''Frecce Tricolori'':
See also
* List of aerobatic teams
References
Sources
*
External links
*
Aermacchi MB-339 PAN
for Digital Combat Simulator
Aermacchi MB-339 PAN
for FlightGear
''FlightGear Flight Simulator'' (often shortened to ''FlightGear'' or ''FGFS'') is a free, open source multi-platform flight simulator developed by the project since 1997.
David Murr started the project on April 8, 1996. The project had its ...
Frecce Tricolori on Airliners.net
Air14 Payerne
{{Coord, 45, 58, 42, N, 13, 03, 05, E, region:IT-UD_type:airport, display=title
Italian Air Force
Italian aerobatic teams
National symbols of Italy