Renato Sandalli (25 February 1897 – 23 October 1968) was an Italian Air Force general that led the Regia Aeronautica between 27 July 1943 to 18 June 1944.Montanelli,Cervi Storia d'Italia

Life and career

Born in Genoa, Sandalli joined the

Regio Esercito The Royal Italian Army ( it, Regio Esercito, , Royal Army) was the land force of the Kingdom of Italy, established with the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. During the 19th century Italy started to unify into one country, and in 1861 Manfr ...

in the February 1916 and fought as Army officer for the entire

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In the early years of the 1920s he became a pilot and after the establishment of the ''Regia Aeronatica'' he left the army to become an air force officer. In the years between the two world wars he also led various units posted in Italy and in the

colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

. From January 1939 he led the Experimental Flight Center then was named commander of all ''Regia Aeronautica'' forces in the Italian occupied Albania. In July 1943 when

Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

was ousted he was a general with duties in the Air Force general staff in Rome, he was named by the king minister of the air force and chief of the staff of the air force. After the

Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...

, he escaped in Brindisi together with the king. In June 1944, when Badoglio resigned from his post as prime minister he left his duties as minister and chief of staff. After the war he remained in the air force with other duties. He died in Rome in 1968.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sandalli, Renato 1897 births 1968 deaths Military personnel from Genoa Italian military personnel of World War I Italian generals Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor Regia Aeronautica chiefs of staff