With the landing of the aircraft at the Rivolto air base, the NAT – North America Tour officially ended, a rich program of performances – 9 international air shows and 17 flyovers – which brought the Italian Air Force, with the Frecce Tricolori, back to the most iconic places in Canada and the United States, some never flown over before by the Air Force. National Acrobatic Patrol, 32 years after the 1992 Columbus tour, on the occasion of the celebrations for the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America.
Starting in early June from Bagotville, Quebec, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force, an air force with which the Italian Air Force – one year away from its Centenary in 2023 – shares a century-old history of common traditions and values, the North America Tour represented an extraordinary opportunity to showcase the excellence of Made in Italy and the values of unity, passion and professionalism of which the Italian Air Force, through the Frecce Tricolori and its operational units, is an ambassador throughout the world, as well as the logistical projection capabilities of personnel and air assets thousands of kilometres from the mother country.
The Tour involved many places and regions of North America – from the provinces of Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia in Canada, to the American states of California, Wisconsin, Illinois, Nevada, Arizona, New York State, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Washington State and Rhode Island – a true tricolour embrace that united the large Italian-Canadian and Italian-American community under a single flag, giving unforgettable emotions to the many fans and American citizens who attended the various events. The spectacular images of the displays and flyovers of the most famous locations in North America went around the world, with the Frecce Tricolori flying over unique places and landscapes such as the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley, Niagara Falls, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Washington, and the Canadian cities of Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa.
The long return journey of the personnel and air assets included a first stop at the Bagotville air base, in Quebec, where the tour had started at the beginning of June, for the reconfiguration operations of the PAN aircraft for oceanic flight; from there the return continued, after a further stop at the Canadian base of Goose Bay, along the stages in Greenland, Iceland, Scotland, the Netherlands, until arriving in Italy, at the Rivolto base, home of the 313th Aerobatic Training Group.
“I am truly proud and honoured for what the Armed Forces have achieved with this Tour”, declared the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Air Force General Luca Goretti. “It was a great collective, team effort, an organizational effort first and foremost that saw various assets and operational and logistical departments of the Air Force working with commitment and passion”. "Once again – added the chief of staff – the National Aerobatic Team gave its best and the enthusiasm we found in all the cities involved in this extraordinary trip to North America is confirmation of this. The NAT24 was a demonstration of the professionalism and skills of the men and women of the Air Force and an important showcase for the entire Italian Defense and for the excellence of Made in Italy”The Chief of Staff of the Air Force, present on August 21st together with General Maurizio Cantiello, attaché for Defense and Defense Cooperation in the USA and Canada, at the air show “NATO Joint-Power Demonstration” in Virginia Beach-Norfolk for the 75th anniversary of the Atlantic Alliance, also wanted to underline the importance of being present on this occasion “to ideally represent the entire Defense and the Country and give a signal of strength, compactness and commitment to the Alliance”.
On this occasion, in addition to the Frecce Tricolori, it was possible to admire another piece of Italy and the Italian Air Force: in fact, a formation of T38C Talon and T6 Texan II aircraft from the ENJJPT (Euro Nato Joint Jet Pilot Training) International Flight School in Sheppard also took part in the air show, where instructor pilots and Italian Air Force personnel train pilots of the Armed Forces, on the T6 aircraft. Texan II.
“NAT24 was a rather complex activity, which led us to operate at a great distance from the mother country”, underlined the commander of the deployment, Colonel Stefano Pietropaoli. “During the tour we touched about 30 locations in North America – including air shows, overflights and technical stops – and all this was possible thanks to the commitment of various departments and operational entities of the Air Force, the invaluable support of the Italian embassy and consular offices and a team effort that made the department, in fact, autonomous for the entire duration of the tour: from flight operations, to logistics, to maintenance, up to administrative support, but also aspects of communication, health and those related to safety in the workplace. In particular, two C-130Js from the 46th Air Brigade of Pisa ensured the transport of materials and personnel for the entire tour and the ocean SAR, while KC-767, G550 and P-72 assets were used to support the outward and return ocean trails”.
“Leading the Frecce Tricolori on this historic occasion”, declared Lieutenant Colonel Massimiliano Salvatore, commander of the 313th PAN aerobatic training group, “It was an indescribable experience, which I experienced as a great responsibility and with genuine pride. We crossed the Atlantic Ocean, reached the Pacific coast flying all the way to California, flying over the most iconic places on an entire continent and showing the public, and in particular the many Italians and Italian-Americans who came, the acrobatic traditions that have made the Frecce Tricolori unique in the world for over sixty years. All of this would not have been possible without the collective effort of the entire Department and the fundamental support components of our Air Force. We have written another memorable page of the 313th Aerobatic Training Group and I could not be more proud of what each of my men has achieved”.
The activities on the tour were many: from meetings with the Italian communities, with cultural associations, with the Italian consulates, with the public that crowded the exhibition spaces that, from time to time, were set up by the Italian Air Force at the locations of the air shows. Unmissable, both for adults and children, the souvenir photo with Roger, the mascot of the Air Force.
