FROM THE CORRIERE DELLA SERA (Newspaper) OF 13th February 1942
Motive: SILVER MEDAL FOR CAPTAIN MANCINI
The Pilot, Captain Luigi Mancini from Torricella, a Fascist (crossed out
with red ink) since 1919 in Milan, he marched on Rome wearing the
Fascist ribbon, as a volunteer for the Great War, a legionary amongst a
stream of people, he also took part in the War in Africa and the War
against Greece. As well as being a fighter by descent, he is a
journalist and the author and editor of the only Aeronautical
Encyclopaedia in the world.
Captain Mancini distinguished himself many times with courageous actions
in Greece and in Yugoslavia, actions that he carried out with great
sang-froid (composure) and with the expert assessment of a pilot, so
that he was awarded the Silver Medal for Military Valour for the
following reasons:
“ABLE AND EXPERT OLD PILOT FROM THE FIRST WORLD WAR, HE ASKED FOR AND
OBTAINED THE POSITION OF FIGHTER-PILOT WITH AN ACTIVE UNIT, IN WHICH HE
OPERATED AS THE DRIVING FORCE, ENTHUSIASTICALLY AND CONVINCINGLY; MANY
TIMES HE CARRIED OUT DIFFICULT WARTIME MISSIONS AGAINST PARTICULARLY
DANGEROUS OBJECTIVES THAT WERE DEFENDED WITH EFFICIENT ANTI-AIRCRAFT
ARTILLERY; VOLUNTEERING FOR A BOMBING AND SHOOTING ACTION, HE FLEW BELOW
ALL SAFETY LEVELS AND HIT THE HEAD OF AN IMPORTANT ENEMY VEHICLE COLUMN,
CAUSING THEIR EXPLOSIVES TO BLOW UP WITH THE ALMOST TOTAL DESTRUCTION OF
THE COLUMN OF VEHICLES, HE THEN CONTINUED TO SHOOT ABOVE ENEMY TROUPS
THAT WERE ADVANCING TOWARDS THE FRONT LINE, MOWING THEM DOWN AND CAUSING
THEM TO DESPAIR. IN ANOTHER RISKY ACTION HE BOMBED THE BRIDGE OVER THE
VOJUSSA, THUS INTERRUPTING AND BLOCKING THE PASSAGE OF ENEMY TROUPS, AND
EVEN THOUGH HIS PLANE WAS HIT BY EXTREMELY VIOLENT ANTI-ARICRAFT FIRE,
HAVING SEEN AN ENEMY BATTERY, HE FLEW VERY LOW SKIMMING THE GROUND,
MANAGING TO HIT THEIR CENTRE, REDUCING THEM TO SILENCE. HE NEVER
RETURNED TO HIS AIRFIELD UNLESS HE HAD COMPLETED THE MISSIONS ASSIGNED
TO HIM.”
Translation courtesy of
Dr. Marion Apley Porreca |