The three-week basic skiing course organized by the “Taurinense” Alpine brigade for approximately 90 Alpine soldiers concluded at the Bousson logistics-training base in the upper Susa Valley.
The course is part of the basic training for the acquisition and development of the ability to move and fight in mountainous terrain. In the ski areas of Via Lattea and Bardonecchia, the Alpine troops - coming from the 2nd Alpine Regiment of Cuneo, the 3rd of Pinerolo, the 9th Alpine Regiment of L'Aquila, the "Nizza Cavalleria" of Bellinzago, the 1st Mountain Artillery and the 32nd Engineers of Fossano, the 1st Alpine Tactical Support and Command Department and the "Taurinense" Brigade Command of Turin - trained in skiing and ski-mountaineering techniques, familiarizing themselves with the equipment and gear provided and their correct use.
The instructors also studied snow and weather phenomena with the students, with a particular focus on the dangers of avalanches, teaching among other things the basic self-rescue techniques, essential for survival in winter mountain environments.
Once this first training phase is completed, the personnel who have proven to be particularly capable will continue the training process at the end of which, through continuous selections and courses, they will be able to obtain the qualification of "military ski instructor", while the most physically and technically suitable Alpine troops will be sent on to specialization and assignment to the rescue units that operate on the slopes of the major national ski areas.
For the Alpine Troops of the Army, altitude training historically represents the main moment in the training of the mountain soldier, aimed at maintaining the ability to Mountain Warfare, which are expressed through complex exercises such as the "Volpe Bianca", the next edition of which will take place in March 2025 in Alto Adige, with the participation of the brigade Taurinense.
