It would have been difficult to make a military ceremony more sober and adequate.
No pomp, no frills, few guests and many Alpine. As it should be so it was. The exemplary decorum of these men in uniform hits the mark again this time, celebrating in a city of mourning is definitely in bad taste even if the celebrations are for the passage of a command as important as the Taurinense, but the Alpini manage to do of the ceremony also a moment of reflection. Every single person intervened, from Dr. Barbero to the commander of the general Alpine Troops Federico Bonato, recalled the pain of our - and of the Loro - city, he combined the emotion to the strength to go beyond for don't let the sense of fear and darkness that terrorism feeds win. Example of extraordinary humanity and civic sense that as a citizen of Turin I appreciated even more than the ceremony.
General Panizzi during his speech shows once again how to be a commander you must deserve your stars on the field, with passion, will and sacrifice. The humanity that carries it inside has not been given to him by the uniform or its Bantam but surely made him choose a specialty that made man the center of his system. The general remembers the commanders who took him to where he is today, from those who saw him as lieutenant to those who gave him Greca and starlets. He smiles seeing them all in the front row and hopes - with a little gleam in his eyes - not to disappoint anyone.
"I don't carry with me only a wealth of experience but I carry with me men, stories and people ... The experience of command or you suffer it or love it, in my daily life I have always tried to understand the challenges that stood before me I cannot, however, just take the credit for the results achieved in these 19 months, if I had no valid staff that with competence and extraordinary sense of duty accompanied me in these years would have gone differently! "
The Man before the Soldier ... exactly!
"I thank the families who have a fundamental role, who make us feel at home and make us appreciate every little gesture. I thank the ANA who, with his contribution, allows the Alpini to go beyond their institutional role to bring something beyond what it is Finally, a dutiful thought goes to all the fallen and the wounded who are a warning and an example for us and for the future, to their families I say that 'the Alpines are here!' call us and we will help you carry this very heavy cross which is the absence of your children, this painful cross you will not carry on your own because the Alpines are all with you. "
The period of command of a great commander and of a great Alpine could not be concluded with more heartfelt and touching words.
General Panizzi leaves "his" Brigade in the hands of General Franco Federici who joined the outgoing commander for a period of two weeks before the symbolic passage of 20 March.
"I have to be honest - says General Panizzi - it almost always happens that commanders who take turns know each other already and have worked together on at least one occasion, this has not happened to us. A small weirdness that made us smile since I I worked with the father of my successor, who was also a general of the Carabinieri, and I never thought that one day I would pass the command of the Brigade to his son. "A pleasant coincidence that makes this moment even more special and describes a split of the lives of the two commanders, the guests and the commanders sitting in the first row smile, it is not often that you work with the father and not with the child who will take over at your command.
General Federici was born in Udine in the 1965 in the 1984 he entered the Military Academy of Modena as official student of the 166 Course, he obtained a Degree in Strategic Science in 1988. A very rich career in the Alpine corps that sees him start as commander of the Platoon Fucilieri at the Alpine Battalion "Morbegno" of Vipiteno to land at the battalion "L'Aquila" by lieutenant colonel. When he is not among his Alpine troops, the general is employed in international task forces that are among the most important in the last decades from Iraq to Afghanistan, and deals with the planning and preparation of different phases and aspects of Italian missions abroad.
A man of undisputed charisma even at several NATO and American commands where he has served on several occasions, he is not new to the corridors of the Army General Staff for which he worked in the J5 Division Plans of the inter-chief summit operational command (COI) and subsequently already as a general he is assigned to the position of Deputy Chief of Forces Employment Department / Head of Operations.
In the new Commander's Settlement Speech, a deep attachment to his green insignia shines through, certainly linked to the traditions that have always distinguished the Alpine Corps. He has a look to the past - from which he draws inspiration - thinking of the future that awaits him along with his men.
"A first respectful greeting I want to put to the flags of war of our regiments, to the tricolor that we have sworn to honor and defend, a second deferential thought goes to the fallen of the Brigade, to their families who are the backbone and the moral support of our I thank for the very important presence for me the President of the National Alpine Association and the Commandant of the Alpine Troops to whom I assure you that I will continue to keep the human and military value of this Brigade always high. I would like to thank my commanders that from the beginning of my career they taught me to carry my backpack in silence and with a spirit of sacrifice. "
Words that the general pronounced with a firm voice, looking at the audience of his guests in the eyes like a true commander should do. The fate of the Brigade has certainly passed into wise hands and they will be able to shape this extraordinary military instrument into something ever more incisive and present in the crisis area.
The Taurinense Alpine Brigade in the last ten years has been largely at the center of international affairs in our country. Employed almost continuously in Afghanistan and in other countries such as Bosnia, Albania and Kosovo, Iraq and Mozambique, Kurdistan and the Central African Republic.
It has distinguished itself for humanity and a spirit of initiative - supported in humanitarian activities by the "non-armed" component of the specialty - it has brought peace and hope to countries torn by war and violence. The National Alpine Association runs parallel to the military institution to support men "in arms" (that is, those who still serve actively) by offering moments of aggregation and connection with the past of their specialty.
For the national territory the "Alpini della Tau" are widely used in the project safe roads that see the army's soldiers working alongside the police for greater protection of the citizen. In the Piedmontese capital where soon there will be the exhibition of the Holy Shroud and the visit of the Holy Father, various operational arrangements of Taurinense men are planned - in coordination with the Order's forces - to ensure that there are no security problems. The presence of the Alpini increased in the aftermath of the Paris attacks to protect the sensitive objectives of the city, no alarmism on the part of the competent authorities who prefer the use of a greater number of soldiers than to risk having leaks in the safety of its citizens.
The use of the Brigade extended beyond the Piedmontese borders during the bad weather emergency in Liguria where the Alpine troops became protagonists due to their speed of use and immediate resolution of highly critical conditions. The Genio Guastatori Alpini of Turin with extraordinary vehicles and men have faced from the operational level to the tactical one the bad weather emergency saving several families in difficulty and putting in safety the areas most at risk of landslides.
What awaits the commander Federici and the Taurinense Alpine Brigade is surely studded with great projects, with a hand extended towards the past and the gaze straight ahead into the future they will be able to bring up the name of our country and enrich the educational background of the new experience with new experiences. 'Italian army.
Denise Serangelo
(A heartfelt thanks goes to General Panizzi and General Federici for the availability and courtesy shown. To Captain Zonzin the gratitude for the great work he has done with us).
