Paratrooper of Repubblica Sociale Italiana (RSI), the Italian Fascist Republic founded by Benito Mussolini on 23 september 1943, waiting for the embark on board of a Savoia-Marchetti S.82 transport aircraft, Vergiate airfield, Varese, Northern Italy, 1944. On Autumn 1943 in Tradate, Varese, was established the Centro di Addestramento Paracadutisti Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana (Parachutist Training Center of National Republican Air Force, the RSI’Air Force), with servicemen and instructors of the former Kingdom of Italy’s Parachutist School and many young volunteers, this latters licensed on Vergiate airfield. The Tradate’s school trained the parachutist of the Battaglione Azzurro (Blue Battalion), which embedded on the Reggimento “Folgore” (“Folgore” Regiment) fought against the Allied troops at the gate of Rome, May-June 1944, and also the parachutist of GNR-Guardia Nazionale Repubblicana’s Battaglione "Mazzarini" (National Republican Guard’s “Mazzarini”Battalion) and of X MAS. Victor Sierra

RSI’s paratroopers

The Italian Air Force’s Fiat G.50bis military code MM6158 landed in Switzerland, at Emmen airfield, on 21 September 1942. The pilot, a warrant officer, during the delivery from Turin to Ghedi, near Brescia, Lombardia, of a fresh factory airplane which only four flight hours, lost orientation because of a compass failure: deviation of up to 75 degrees of the actual course. The plane crossed the border from Italian and Switzerland and pilot, convinced of lack of fuel, decided the land on Swiss territory. Plane and pilot was interned in Switzerland, but the late was exchanged, together two German pilots, against a British Mosquito’s crew which made an emergency landing in Berne and returned in Italy on 21 December 1942. Victor Sierra

Interned in Switzerland

This Fieseler Fi.156C-3 Storch with the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force’s insignia is the same aircraft today displayed on the Vigna di Valle’s Italian Air Force Museum. A plane with an eventful story closely related to the Resistance, the fight of Italian partisan against the Nazis and the Fascists after the Armistice, and to a singular figure: the Lieutenant pilot, afterwards Avvocato, (lawyer) Furio Lauri after the war awarded of the Gold Medal of Military Valor. Born at Zara, Istria, on 11 October 1918, (passed away on Rome, 2 October 2002), Lauri was a gallantry fighter pilot with 100 war mission and eleven victories. Wounded in combat, on 22 January 1943, convalescing in Trieste at moment of Italian armistice’s announcement, 8 September 1943, was able to reach, in eventful circumstances, Rome taking part in fight after Germans on Porta San Paolo and, afterward, leading a small group of saboteurs in action at North of Rome. Late 1944, Lauri, formally an Italian Regia Aeronautica’s officer, but not embedded on a service unit, proposed a particular type of operation: flying behind the enemy lines with an airplane Storch class landing on the zone controlled by the partisans for commandos and intelligence missions. The proposal was accepted by Allied authorities and Lauri was embedded, beginning 1945, on a Special Force Unit, Number 1, of American 5th Army, HQ at Florence. At Lauri was assigned the only Storch still on charge to Italian Air Force. Because this strictly relationship between him and the American commands was believed Lauri related to OSS and not to Italian military authorities. Lauri, well conscious of the risks (the German put an reward on his head), accomplished seven missions overflying the territory occupied by Nazis, often daylight, for a total of 2,000 km. Well important a mission: on the last days of the war the German commander of Genoa’s harbor was captured by partisans with the plans for the destruction of the same harbor. Lauri landed on partisan territory transferred to Florence the German officer and the plans and returned at Genoa, before the Germans retirement, with a specialist which defused the charges. After the war Lauri founded at Ronchi dei Legionari the Meteor which, after a small production of gliders and light planes, produced the first Italian drones. Sold the Meteor to Finmeccanica Group, Lauri founded, near Rome, a company for design and production of an advanced type of light aircraft. The Lauri’s Storch, private owner, remained in Italy on flight conditions. Sold in UK to a British owner, late XX century was recovered, still in flying conditions, by the same Lauri and give to Italian Air Force’s Museum. Victor Sierra