On Thursday 3 September, the handover ceremony between the outgoing commander, Colonel Massimiliano Pasqua, and the incoming commander, Colonel Nadir Ruzzon, took place at the Istrana military airport, home to the 51st wing.
The event, chaired by the commander of the Combat Forces Command, General of the Air Division Francesco Dressed, took place in front of the War Flag of the Department, to underline the important moment in the life and activities of the Department and with a minimum representation of personnel and local authorities, in line with the requirements dictated by the emergency situation in progress.
Colonel Pasqua, after more than two years of command of the 51st flock, characterized by the arrival of the F2000 aircraft and the return of Istrana after more than 20 years among the Air Defense Bodies, without forgetting the celebrations in 2019 for the 30 years of life of the AM-X aircraft and the 80 years since the founding of the flock, thanked the authorities and the citizens of Treviso for the demonstrations of closeness and the affection shown towards the Department during its mandate.
In his speech, col. Easter underlined how the objectives were achieved thanks to the enthusiasm and commendable professional commitment of the staff. "You have made my task easier and safer, I am deeply proud to have been your commander" has continued "Together we have lived two years of intense work, during which we continued the operational mission outside the national borders in the fight against the DAESH with the Black Cats task group and worked on a national level also in support of other departments, offering the information superiority capability of the AMX aircraft ". In his conclusions, col. Easter wanted to underline the full autonomy achieved in competing with the Euro Fighter of the 51st flock in the airspace surveillance service and carry out the air defense mission: Armed Force objective achieved in the period of maximum intensity of the health emergency from COVID 19.
After the handover, Colonel Nadir Ruzzon, in his first speech as commander, underlined how he is aware of the challenge that awaits him together with the whole Department in order to achieve further prestigious goals. "I am ready to start this new experience, happy to know that all of you will be at my side, without distinction military and civilians, colleagues of undisputed professionalism, ability and passion".
In the closing speech of the ceremony, after having paid a respectful salute to the War Flag of the 51st Wing, General Dressed recognized all the personnel of the Department the great merit of having successfully achieved the high value objectives, including which primarily that of having provided in an impeccable manner the substantial contribution to the surveillance of national and NATO airspace.
Then thanking Colonel Pasqua for the brilliant command action carried out at the helm of the 51st flock and having given a warm welcome to Colonel Ruzzon as new commander, he also wanted to turn a thought to the families who offer their precious daily moral support by sharing sacrifices and satisfactions: "your home and affective support are the real lymph that regenerates individual well-being for a harmonious operation at work. Thank you for what you do and what you will do".
