Mario Pezzi (9 November 1898 – 26 August 1968) was an Italian

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

known worldwide for his flight in which he achieved greater height than any other pilot in a propeller-powered

airplane An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spe ...

Biography

The future

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

was born on 9 November 1898. He had one brother,

Enrico Enrico is both an Italian masculine given name and a surname, Enrico means homeowner, or king, derived from ''Heinrich'' of Germanic origin. It is also a given name in Ladino. Equivalents in other languages are Henry (English), Henri ( French), Enr ...

, who also grew up to be a

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in the

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. Mario joined the

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in October 1917, and the next year earned the rank of

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

. He received his

pilot's license Pilot licensing or certification refers to permits for operating aircraft. Flight crew licences are regulated by ICAO Annex 1 and issued by the civil aviation authority of each country. CAA’s have to establish that the holder has met a specifi ...

in 1926. The next year he became part of the

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, rising to Cabinet of the Defense Ministry in 1931. After Pezzi's record flight, he was decorated with the Gold Medal of Aeronautic Valor and promoted

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. Later he also became

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Aeronautics Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight–capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifies ...

as well as Chief of the General Staff. From 1950-1955, Pezzi worked as Head of Cabinet of the Minister and, subsequently, General Secretary of Aeronautics. Pezzi is rightly considered an aeronautics and astronautics pioneer in Italy not only for his altitude records: he was the man who chose

Luigi Broglio Luigi Broglio (11 November 1911 – 14 January 2001), was an Italian aerospace engineer, airforce lieutenant colonel and dean of the school of aeronautical engineering at the University of Rome La Sapienza. Known as "the Italian von Braun", he is ...

to lead the ITAF Ammunition Research Unit, responsible for rockets and missiles research, leading the way to future space exploration in Italy. Broglio himself described that meeting with Pezzi: "In 1956, secretary-general of ITAF Pezzi, the man famous for his altitude flight records, asked me to replace the officer responsible for the ITAF Ammunition Research Unit, a branch of the Service dealing with rockets and missiles too. I answered that it was not my field, my field being airplanes, not rockets. Pezzi objected: "Then give me the name of some top brass who is expert in that field". I answered again no, I did not know anyone with such a capability. "Well, then the job is yours" was Pezzi's conclusion.

Record Flight

Pezzi established his record above

Montecelio Guidonia Montecelio (), commonly known as Guidonia, is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Lazio, central Italy. Geography The municipality of Guidonia Montecelio, formed by the main towns of Guidonia and Montecelio, l ...

(

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) aboard a Caproni Ca.161

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

with a

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motor and pressurised airtight cabin, wearing a special pressure suit picture
/sup> and reaching a height of 17,083 m (56,047 ft). This record still stands today. On 7 May 1937 Pezzi took off from the Guidonia-Montecelio base in a Caproni Ca161 aircraft powered by a 14 cyl. double stellar engine supercharged by a double centrifugal 750 hp compressor. Piloting this aircraft he climbed to 15,655 m (51,362 ft). Pezzi wore a special electrically heated pressurized suit and an airtight helmet, just like a modern astronaut. In the Caproni hangars in the meantime work went on ceaselessly to produce a new version of the aircraft, the Ca161bis designed by engineer Verduzio. Its cockpit was embedded in an air-tight shell, the first one to be built in the history of flight. The great expectations on this machine were soon fulfilled: on 22 October 1938 Pezzi attained a new world record for altitude in a propeller-driven, piston-engined aircraft (17,083 m, 56,047 ft), a record still unbeaten today. In those years Americans, Germans, English and French fought for this record, and Italy entered the contest with 14,433 m (47,355 ft) in 1934 from Donates on his Caproni Ca.113 with a

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motor. In 1936, the Englishman Francis Ronald Swain achieved 15,230 m (49,970 ft) with a

Bristol 138 The Bristol Type 138 High Altitude Monoplane was a British high-altitude single-engine, low-wing monoplane research aircraft developed and produced by the Bristol Aeroplane Company during the 1930s. It set nine world altitude records, with the ...

; but in the same year Pezzi surpassed this, reaching 15,635 m (51,300 ft) aboard a Ca.161. In 1937, the Englishman M.J. Adam in his turn exceeded it with 16,440 m (53,940 ft) to edge ahead once again in the Bristol 138. On 22 October the following year, Pezzi achieved his still-valid world record for propeller aircraft with a height of 17,083 m (56,046.6 feet). As a young man, Pezzi had entered a career in aeronautics, becoming a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

, and in 1934 he had been named commander of the unit for the record flight from Montecelio. He became a high official and received many decorations. In the post-war period he was general secretary of Aeronautics and subsequently head of Cabinet of the Defense Ministry.

References

Enrico Pezzi's Family Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pezzi, Mario Italian aviators 1898 births 1968 deaths Caproni people Flight altitude record holders Recipients of the Medal of Aeronautic Valor Italian aviation record holders