The "Rock Topside 20" exercise ended last Sunday, which saw 34 paratroopers of "Savoia" cooperate together with US colleagues from the 2nd battalion of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, paratrooper unit based at the Ederle barracks in Vicenza.
The training phase carried out by the knights of the "Folgore" brigade, took place at the SETAF base in Vicenza and was useful for studying mission planning and specific preparatory activities related to the aircraft and the type of parachute used by American colleagues. The knights of the brigade, once boarded on an Air Force C-17 aircraft that took off from the Aviano base, flew over the "Marta" launch area, located inside the Monteromano shooting range, in the province of Viterbo, where carried out a mass launch.
The Savoy paratroopers, once they landed, carried out reordering, fixing, disrupting and ambushing operations, as OPFOR (Opposing Force) with some joint training sessions with American soldiers. The entire training cycle saw the deployment of the forces of the 2nd "The Rock" battalion proceed with the validation of their troops deployed subsequently in the areas of Hoenfels in Germany.
The preparation, combined with the professionalism and constructive spirit of the paratroopers, allowed to successfully complete all the activities, also gathering appreciation from the US Command. The exercise, in its complexity, proved to be fundamental for training and perfecting the planning, initiative and decision-making autonomy skills, both of the commanders and of the individual elements. The training exercise allowed, among other things, the achievement of the US parachuting patent for the entire Italian platoon flying on the "Marta" Drop Zone, including some "young" VFP1 riders who, supported by older colleagues, faced the new challenge with stubbornness, determination and pride.
The "Rock Topside" has allowed the personnel of "Savoia Cavalleria" to be able to deal with a foreign aviation-carried unit, increasing their cooperation skills within the airborne community and highlighting the peculiarities of the paratrooper cavalry, combining the capabilities of the air troops (air launch and reorganization in hostile territory, attack and defense) to those typical of Cavalry (reconnaissance of area and itineraries in an occult way, acquisition of objectives).
