Rivolto military airfield

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Rivolto
“Mario Visintini” military airfield
Rivolto Military Air Base (Friuli Venezia Giulia)
Red pog.svg
Characteristics
ICAO code LIPI
Coordinates

45 ° 58 '44 "  N , 13 ° 2' 58"  E Coordinates: 45 ° 58 '44 "  N , 13 ° 2' 58"  E

Height above MSL 55 m (180  ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center 3 km northeast of Rivolto
Street Strada Statale 13 Pontebbana
train Codroipo train station
Local transport bus
Basic data
opening May 31, 1940
operator Aeronautica Militare
Start-and runway
06/24 2550 m × 44 m asphalt

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The Rivolto military airfield is located in the northern Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia , about 18 kilometers southwest of Udine , in the area of ​​the municipality of Codroipo , just under three kilometers northeast of the town of Rivolto. The Italian Air Force has stationed its Frecce Tricolori aerobatic team here .

Infrastructure and use

The military airfield is located between Codroipo in the southwest and Campoformido in the northeast on Strada Statale 13 Pontebbana . The main entrance is located on SS 13, and to the southeast of it is the 2500 meter long runway (06/24) that runs parallel to the state road . To the south of the runway and the taxiway running parallel to it, there are military installations with parking areas and protected aircraft shelters in the village of Villacaccia, while the Frecce Tricolori facilities are in the south-east . In addition to the aerobatic team , which officially has a second assignment in the field of close air support and in the fight against helicopters , an anti-aircraft missile unit ( 2º Stromo on Spada ) is based at the airfield . Rivolto is connected to the Northern Italy Pipeline System . The military airfield is named after Mario Visintini , a fighter pilot who fell in Africa in 1941.

history

On the site of today's airfield there was an (unofficial) makeshift or emergency landing site until the Second World War , which was subordinate to the Campoformido military airfield, which was much more important at the time. On May 31, 1940, the "Camouflaged Operation Airfield 148" was set up near Rivolto. There were no special incidents here until 1943. After the armistice of Cassibile , the region and with it Rivolto became part of the German Adriatic Coastal Operation Zone . The Todt Organization expanded a number of Italian airfields in the area and connected them in part with longer taxiways, including Rivolto and the Villaorba airfield, which is around two kilometers further north. The Venice-Udine railway line running between the two systems was crossed by a bridge over which aircraft were pulled if necessary. The complete realization of the expansion project failed due to Allied air raids, which also partially affected the surrounding villages. The Allies occupied Rivolto Airfield from 1945 to 1947.

The emerging Cold War prompted the Italian Air Force in the late 1940s to select suitable airfields in Friuli to defend northeastern Italy . Among the many former airfields, Aviano and Rivolto were chosen . For the expansion of the Rivolto airfield, expropriations had to be carried out on a number of farmers in 1951 , which led to protests until 1957. In those years, the airfield was practically rebuilt according to NATO standards at the time . In the late 1950s it was used as an advanced base, particularly by Italian and allied fighter jets that were practicing on the air-to-ground firing range near Maniago . In 1960 the Italian air force command decided to set up a central aerobatic team in Rivolto and at the same time to dissolve the various aerobatic teams of the individual squadrons. In the course of time, numerous air shows were held in Rivolto . In addition, the airfield was otherwise the target of countless plane spotters , who position themselves along State Road 13 during the normal training flights of the Frecce Tricolori .

In 1993 the 2nd Squadron ( 2º Stormo ) moved from Treviso to Rivolto. In 1989 it had lost one of its two squadrons ( 103º Gruppo ) to the 51st squadron in Istrana . The remaining 14th squadron ( 14º Gruppo ) came to Rivolto in 1994 with their AMX and flew from there between 1995 and 1999 several missions in support of international missions in the former Yugoslavia . After the squadron was disbanded at the end of 2002, the 2nd Squadron took over the service management of the 313rd Frecce Tricolori aerobatic squadron , which had been independent since it was founded. In 2007 the squadron became autonomous again, as the 2nd squadron took on a new role as an anti-aircraft unit and thus three squadrons of the 1st Brigata Aerea . In addition, the 2nd Squadron in Rivolto is still responsible for the airfield infrastructure and support tasks.

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