{"id":18071,"date":"2025-04-30T14:53:15","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T13:53:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/?p=18071"},"modified":"2025-12-08T15:17:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T14:17:09","slug":"30-aprile-1941-il-primo-lancio-di-guerra-dei-paracadutisti-italiani-unimpresa-troppo-spesso-dimenticata","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/30-april-1941-the-first-war-jump-of-the-italian-paratroopers-a-feat-too-often-forgotten\/","title":{"rendered":"30 April 1941, the all-Italian pioneering feat: the first wartime jump by our paratroopers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Fatherland calls, Paratroopers answer present\".<\/strong>. With these unwritten words, but engraved in the heart of every Parachutist, one of the most extraordinary - and too often forgotten - operations in Italian military history takes shape: the first war drop of the Italian Paratroopers<\/strong>happened exactly 84 years ago<\/strong>, the 30 April 1941<\/strong>on the Greek island of Cephalonia<\/strong>.
A daring operation that would have led in a few hours to theoccupation of Kefalonia, Zakynthos and Ithaca<\/strong>reinforcing the Italian presence in the Ionian Sea and opening a new era for the fledgling speciality. An event that time has sometimes ignored or belittled, but for those who preserve the memory it remains a symbol of bravery, inter-force organisation and absolute military valour<\/strong>in a pioneering era for the speciality of Parachutists<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"30<\/picture>
La Stampa newspaper celebrates Italian enterprise<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The historical context and the urgency of action<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The 10 June 1940<\/strong>Italy formally entered the war, beginning its participation in the Second World War. From the outset, Italian forces were engaged on several fronts: in East and North Africa<\/strong>and on the Alps against France<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 29 April 1941<\/strong>armistice with Greece is signed, but the geopolitical situation requires rapid action to prevent total control of the area from falling into German hands<\/strong>. The previous day, five Cant Z.506 seaplanes<\/strong> under the orders of Colonel Grande<\/strong> had transported an Italian department to Corfu<\/strong>where a Greek regiment had surrendered. Shortly afterwards, the I Battalion of the 17th Infantry Regiment of the 'Acqui' Division<\/strong> landed on the island, consolidating the occupation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, one question remained open: Cephalonia<\/strong>. At that time, according to international practice, territories belong to those who occupy them militarily<\/strong>. It was therefore crucial to move quickly to ensure an Italian presence on the island<\/strong>strategically crucial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The choice fell on one of the youngest but most promising specialities of the Royal Army: the Paratroopers<\/strong>. The Italian state had invested heavily in the training of these elite troops, and now it was time to put them to the test in a real theatre of war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I Balkans represent a crucial strategic node<\/strong>Checking this area means dominate access to the Corinth Canal<\/strong>influence maritime routes to the eastern Mediterranean and protect the southern flank of the Axis<\/strong>. With this in mind, Kefalonia assumes primary importance<\/strong>Its conquest, in addition to securing a favourable tactical position, would have demonstrated the readiness and effectiveness of the newly formed Italian air forces<\/strong>in what will be the first inter-force operation in national military history<\/strong>, jointly between Air Force, Navy and Army<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"30<\/picture>
30 April 1941, the all-Italian pioneering feat: the first wartime drop of our paratroopers - brigadefolgore.net<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The race against time<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to the minutes kept in the General Staff Archives, the operation is planned in very few days, between 25 and 27 April<\/strong>. On the evening of 28 April, while the Parachutists of the 2nd Battalion are hanging out in the bars of Civitavecchia, an urgent order calls them back to the barracks. The Major Mario Zanninovich<\/strong>commander of the 2nd Battalion (later merged into the 187th Regiment<\/a> of Division Folgore<\/a>), is urgently summoned to the Piave Barracks<\/strong>where he finds the General Frattini<\/strong>The battalion is destined for the first war launch in Italian history. It is the beginning of a race against time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 29 April<\/strong>, the Piave Barracks<\/strong> of Civitavecchia turns into a real operational hive. Weapons, ammunition, food, IFSP 41 SP parachutes and other material arrive from the nearby Tarquinia Parachute School<\/strong> and are quickly prepared for the upcoming operation. The paratroopers are equipped with the 91 musket equipped with folding bayonet<\/strong>, i MAB 38<\/strong> for team commanders, and the machine gun Breda 30<\/strong> as a departmental weapon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The selected companies are Fifth<\/strong>under the command of the Captain Avogadro<\/strong>, and the Sixth<\/strong>commanded by the Captain Macchiato<\/strong>. A midnight 29 April<\/strong>, the battalion leaves the station of Civitavecchia<\/strong> directed towards Lecce<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Only during the train journey do the parachutists receive the definitive information: the target is Kefalonia<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arriving at the airport of Galatina<\/strong>waiting for them are three Savoy-Marchetti SM-82<\/strong> (initially six were planned). For this reason it was decided that it would be the Fifth Company<\/strong> to make the launch, while the Sixth will remain in the background<\/strong>. In a hurry, the aircraft are adapted and optimised for aviation: the restraining rope is shortened from 5 to 3 metres<\/strong>and proceed with a test launch<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Upon embarkation, it is handed over to the Major Zanninovich<\/strong> a flag of the Kingdom of Italy<\/strong>entrusted to him by the Colonel Baudoin<\/strong> - pilot, parachutist, and considered the spiritual father<\/strong> of the young paratroopers he had personally trained in Tarquinia. That flag will be hoisted on the Prefecture of Argostoli<\/strong> after the conquest of the island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Baudoin, it is an emotionally charged moment: finally 'his' boys<\/strong> are used for what they had trained so hard for in Tarquinia - a real war operation with airdrop<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"30<\/picture>
Fifth Company Parachutists check their equipment before boarding the SM-82 aircraft<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

30 April, 12:30 p.m.: history takes off<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Three SM-82 take off from Galatina escorted by bombers<\/strong> Cant Z1007<\/strong> e Macchi M.C.202 fighters<\/strong>. On board, 72 parachutists ready to enter the legend. After an hour's flight, they reach the Krameta' Launch Zone<\/strong>near Argostoli. The roar of the planes dominates the silence of the island. When the green light comes on, officers launch first<\/strong>. It is the parachutist tradition: the example comes from the highest ranks. The altitude is low, around 300 metres, the wind and speed strong, but nothing can stop them. The desire to be protagonists in such a long-awaited moment overcomes any difficulty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sky fills with white domes. I Italian parachutists land<\/strong>. Some between olive trees and dry stone walls, immediately gathering in platoons and proceeding to take up positions on the hills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"30<\/picture>
A phase of the Italian Parachutists' descent towards Argostoli<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Greek surrender and the reclamation of the city centre<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Greek gendarmes<\/strong>taken by surprise by the arrival of the Italians<\/strong>They immediately surrendered without resistance. They reached the settlement, parachutists<\/strong> they saw waving white flags<\/strong> as a sign of surrender. They then proceeded to the reclamation of the urban area<\/strong>, checking house to house<\/strong>with particular attention to buildings with closed doors or shutters<\/strong>. During operations they commandeered a buses<\/strong> to facilitate movement in the town centre<\/strong>. Having completed the reclamation, they headed towards the Prefecture of Argostoli<\/strong>where they were reunited with the Italian departments landed by sea<\/strong> in the bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"30<\/picture>
30 April 1941: Italian paratroopers on board a Greek bus requisitioned to facilitate travel in the centre of the island<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Tricolour flies over Kefalonia<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Around 14:30<\/strong>, five Cant Z506 seaplanes<\/strong> docked in front of the port, carrying personnel from the Regia Marina<\/strong>of the Royal Air Force<\/strong> and the Black Shirts<\/strong>. It was about the occupation completion forces<\/strong>. Among them were officers of the Bari Army Corps<\/strong> and the Consul Giovanni Battista Cagnoni<\/strong>, in charge of formalising the city's surrender<\/strong>. In the meantime, parachutists<\/strong> they headed towards the Prefecture of Argostoli<\/strong>where they were reunited with the Italian departments landed by sea<\/strong>. With departments deployed in the square adjacent to the prefecture<\/strong>, the Italian Tricolour<\/strong>delivered by the Colonel Baudoin<\/strong> at Major Mario Zanninovich<\/strong> during embarkation in Galatina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"30<\/picture>
Gathered in the square adjacent to the prefecture of Argostoli, the Paratroopers witness the official Greek surrender and the raising of the Italian Tricolour flag<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A mission of war, but also of humanity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I Italian parachutists<\/strong>once positions have been consolidated, quickly occupied strategic points on the island<\/strong>the port, the hospitals, the power station, the telegraph station and the prisons. But they soon realised a dramatic reality: the civilian population was exhausted<\/strong>deprived of essential provisions and medicines. By order of the Italian officers<\/strong>were carried out. aviation-humanitarian supplies<\/strong>with launches of flour, rice and sanitary material<\/strong>intended exclusively for the support of the local population. In addition, a priest <\/strong>to celebrate the Holy Mass<\/strong> and offer spiritual comfort to the local Christian community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next day, aliquots of Italian military personnel<\/strong> moved by sea to the islands of Zakynthos and Ithaca<\/strong>thus completing the control of the entire Ionian archipelago<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Major Verando<\/strong>also launched in Cephalonia and destined to become Chief of Staff of the 'Folgore' Division<\/strong>drafted a detailed report<\/strong> which represents the first doctrinal core for the development of future Italian Air Force<\/strong>. It analysed fundamental aspects such as the exit times<\/strong>, the length of the restraining rope<\/strong>, the launch quota<\/strong>, the wind management<\/strong>, the material transported,<\/strong> the inter-force coordination<\/strong> and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, much remained to be perfected - as is natural in apioneering military action<\/strong> - but it was from that experience that the operational birth of the Italian paratrooper speciality<\/strong>while revealing how lethal and effective they could be<\/strong> in action. A bold and decisive first step towards excellence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"30<\/picture>
A moment of the airlift over Cephalonia, ordered by Italian officers to help the Greek population<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A lesson for Italy and the world<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The operation on Kefalonia demonstrates speed, precision and ductility<\/strong> of paratroopers. In less than three days, a battalion is alerted, equipped, transferred and successfully dropped into hostile territory. A pioneering feat that set the standard and that today is foundation of excellence of the Folgore<\/strong> at ariborne community<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, 30 April<\/strong>the Paratroopers of the 187th Regiment 'Folgore'<\/strong>framing the glorious 2nd Battalion 'Tarquinia'<\/strong>, honour this date each year<\/strong>remembering the faces and names of those who, wearing throwing boots and blue insignia with gladius and wing, wrote a luminous page of Italian military and air force history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Honour to the Paratroopers of Cephalonia!<\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

'The Fatherland calls, the Parachutists answer present'. With these unwritten words, but engraved in the heart of every Paratrooper, one of the most extraordinary - and all too often forgotten - operations in Italian military history takes shape: the first war jump of the Italian Paratroopers, which took place exactly 84 years ago, on 30 April 1941, on the Greek island of [...].<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18076,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2893],"tags":[53,1094,81],"sgg_keywords":[],"class_list":["post-18071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aviotruppe","tag-folgore","tag-naciosucefalonia","tag-paracadutisti"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18071"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18071\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18076"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18071"},{"taxonomy":"sgg_keywords","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brigatafolgore.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sgg_keywords?post=18071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}