Thursday 9 July, in the presence of the commander of the Air Squad, general of the air squad Maurizio Lodovisi, of the commander of the Support and Special Forces (CFSS), general of the air division Roberto Comelli and of the highest civil, military and religious authorities of Ciampino , the handover ceremony to the Command of the 31st Wing took place between Colonel Alessandro Tortorella, outgoing commander and Colonel Filippo Quagliato, taking over.
The ceremony took place inside the hangar of the 31 ° Stormo "Carmelo Raiti" in Ciampino (Rome), where the efficiency of the Airbus 319 CJ, Falcon 900 EX, Falcon 900 EASy, Falcon 50 and VH 139 assigned to the Department.
Colonel Tortorella, at the helm of the "Raiti" since July 2013, in his farewell speech traced the path of his command: "Exactly two years ago, in this wonderful hangar of the Air Force, I took command of this with immense pride prestigious Department of the Air Force; I said that the challenges that awaited the women and men of the 31 ° Stormo would be many, adapt promptly to changes, manage priorities, maintain a high level of training, always in full compliance with the guidelines of the superior authorities that I sincerely thank for having placed such trust in me ”.
He therefore thanked all the military and civilian personnel for the support received, the dedication, the cohesion of intentions and the daily precious work done in ensuring the mission of the Department, as well as the conspicuous amount of operational goals achieved. "[...] there has not been a single moment, during these two intense years, that the Winged Figurehead present on the wonderful blue emblem of the 31st was not present, in every thought, in every gesture or emotion".
Colonel Quagliato, for his part, thanked the outgoing commander and said he was first of all honored for having received the task of leading a department: “I am ready for this exciting professional challenge. And I am ready because I can count on all of you, on the certainty of a successful team, made up of men and women of great value, trained, professional, characterized by a great passion and always mission-oriented. What distinguishes the mandate of the 31st Wing, its essence, is that the level of preparation and operational readiness required must be constantly maintained at high standards: you can't go wrong; it is not a sprint, but a constant and continuous daily challenge at the service of the country and the citizen ”.
General Lodovisi expressed, in the course of his speech, a heartfelt thanks to Colonel Tortorella for the period of command carried out and to all the staff of the 31 ° for the assured service, for the professionalism and dedication widely demonstrated on several occasions in the carry out the mission assigned to the flock.
He then urged the new commander to pursue increasingly flattering operational and training results in order to improve the service rendered to the country.
See also the online defense interview with Colonel Tortorella
