My father's (RA fighter pilot) flying logbook

[Saetta66]

PART 1 - The Training
I have read often that the training of Regia Aeronautica pilots was not as "good" - for war - as the one of major Axis or Allied nations.
I do not know if is right or not, i do not have the know how about it.
One thing we can do togheter is check my dad logbook and see how they trained.
Then we can compare.

First of all, let me intoduce you to the leutennant of Regia Aeronautica Gualberto Fabbrini (2 january 1919 - 9 april 2000), my father. Here he is

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Great! Would really like to see his logbook!

 

[Saetta66]

For every RA pilot there were 3 books:
1) the caratheristic book of flying (owned by the Air Ministry)
2) the personal flying logbook (owned by the single pilot).
This 2 books have the same identical contents for the war time. For the training time you have to look only at the first one. And that is exactly what we gonna do now.
3) the book with the psichological and attitudinal caratheristics of the pilot/soldier, owned by the Air Ministry.
I have the first 2, not the last one. Is probably lost somewhere in an unknown place ....

here we go with the LIBRO CARATTERISTICO DEI VOLI

 

[evangilder]

Great piece of family history.

 

[Saetta66]

Here you can see the first page with the cadet datas until the day he finished the military pilot training.

He got the licence to drive the RO41 and the Fiat cr 32 Ace (the 2 kind of planes more used in training schools, old planes but still in action in the first part of ww2 ....).
Later on, as we will see, he took the ability to fly with Fiat cr 42 falco, the fiat g50 arrow and tne macchi mc 200 Lightning.

 

[ToughOmbre]

Excellent history you have there!

TO

 

[Saetta66]

Thank you to everybody: glad to share this with you, air enthusiasts like me.
Hope one day you guys will help me in my project of writing a book about my dad and his fighter group.
I wanna do it to keep the memory alive: they have lost but they fought with honour.

 

[Saetta66]

here there is a summary of all the hours he flow like civilian with turistic small plan before entering in the military air school.
The fact that he already had a civilian licence like pilot helped him to enter in the RA. The fact that he was a college student helped him become a pilot officer.

 

[vikingBerserker]

That is just so cool!

 

[Saetta66]

Other planes flown by that : breda 25 and Fiat cr 42 - the last biplane of ww2: he'll go to Africa with it ....

 

[Saetta66]

The training was divided into two courses of one year each.
The first course was general and during the first year they decided in which speciality the pilot was ready for.
My dad spent the first year of course in the military airport of Pescara in central italy.
Here there is the files of his last month of general training, with airplane, pilot, height of flying, time, kind of exercises. I will tranlsate as soon as I will have much time, ok?

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Saetta, If I understand his log book, he received his primary training in an Imam RO-5. It seems he soloed in just over 7 hours, which if correct, is excellent.

On a miliatary page it seems he was authorized to fly the Ro 41 and the CR 32, am I correct?

 

[Saetta66]

My dad was chosen for the chase.
It was decided that he has to become a fighter pilot.
In fact, the second part of the training was in the famous fighter school of Castiglione del Lago near Perugia.
Here is a a sample.

 

[Saetta66]

Saetta, If I understand his log book, he received his primary training in an Imam RO-5. It seems he soloed in just over 7 hours, which if correct, is excellent.

On a miliatary page it seems he was authorized to fly the Ro 41 and the CR 32, am I correct?

yes you are right in both considerations FlyBoyJ

 

[Saetta66]

Before becomin finally a military pilot he had to pass oral and practical tests that I will show you in details next time if you are intersted on it.
Now i show you the official sum of all my father's civil and military training hours.

Here we go

 

[FLYBOYJ]

yes you are right in both considerations FlyBoyJ

Thanks!

On the last page you posted did he have 500 or 1500 hours flight time?

 

[Saetta66]

Thanks!

On the last page you posted did he have 500 or 1500 hours flight time?

Seems 500 to me but I never asked him so ..... we only can make an addition if we got the time

 

[Saetta66]

Unfortunately I have to go now, guys.
Hope you enjoeyd and I promise that I will show you more in the future.
Now enoy this pic of Gualberto and a friend at the training school of Pescara.
Ciao

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Saetta - I look forward to more posts - thank you! This has been very interesting.

It seems that if your father had 500 hours before seeing combat, he was very well trained. Many US pilots came over to Europe with half that flight time and soon saw combat.

Do you know if he received any instrument training? (Cloud Flying)

 

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