The defense minister, sen., Was present to pay the last farewell to Captain Alessandro Dotto, to Captain Paolo Piero Franzese, to Captain Giuseppe Palminteri and to Captain Mariangela Valentini. Roberta Pinotti, the Chief of Defense Staff, Admiral Luigi Binelli Mantelli, and the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Air Force General Pasquale Preziosa. The entire 6 ° Stormo, together with many colleagues from other air force departments and representatives of various combat and weapon associations, gathered around the coffins wrapped in the Tricolor and the families of the four young officers.
The funeral, officiated by the military ordinary for Italy, HE Monsignor Santo Marcianò, was attended not only by civil and military authorities, national and local, but also by numerous citizens who wanted to be present to testify their closeness and their condolences.
In his homily, HE Monsignor Santo Marcianò wanted to remember and pay tribute to the passion and dedication of the four young officers: "Yes dear Mariangela, Alessandro, Giuseppe and Paolo Piero: we are here to take you home! You left your homes to answer a call and carry out a mission that united you. And what in particular has united you, in these days we have often heard it repeated, it was the passion: the passion for the flight, the passion for your service "- then continued the Military Ordinary -" E really true: you can't do a job like that without passion! And, in a time like ours, in which disillusionment seems to envelop the present and the future, especially for the new generations, the testimony of those who infuse their passion into a commitment that gives meaning to life is precious. The passion that Mariangela, Alessandro, Giuseppe and Paolo Piero have lived and witnessed is not simply a desire to be fulfilled but many more: it requires availability, discipline, dedication, training. "
As a sign of respect and greeting for the missing crews, today all the military aviation departments held the flag at half mast and observed a minute of silence.
Source: AM - General Office for Communication
