Fratelli Pascale Story: from the 30s onward - Tecnam.com
Fratelli Pascale Story: from the 30s onward - Tecnam.com
Fratelli Pascale Story: from the 30s onward - Tecnam.com
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<strong>Fratelli</strong> <strong>Pascale</strong> <strong>Story</strong>: <strong>from</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>30s</strong> <strong>onward</strong><br />
achieve <strong>the</strong> I° grade pilot’s license. We had <strong>the</strong> medical examination, we were fit and we started immediately <strong>the</strong><br />
course with <strong>the</strong> instructor Alfeo Poli on <strong>the</strong> plane Macchi MB 308.<br />
Paying <strong>the</strong> pilot’s license wasn’t so easy: we didn’t have enough money and we couldn’t ask <strong>the</strong>m at home. Luckily<br />
for us a plane Macchi of <strong>the</strong> Aero Club was damaged during <strong>the</strong> landing and we proposed to do <strong>the</strong> repairing, which<br />
was used to pay <strong>the</strong> license for Gino and me. As students, we were doing very well: after only 4 hours of dual<br />
controls we already took off by ourselves.<br />
The goal was to learn immediately how to fly with our P48 Astore.<br />
With days passing by, we became more and more impatient; we had to find by all means a solution to make <strong>the</strong> plane<br />
flying. One evening we met at home and we decided to go to Rome to find a pilot willing to do <strong>the</strong> test flight. We left<br />
in <strong>the</strong> morning Gino, Nicola Genua and I, with his “Cinquecento” car. We went to <strong>the</strong> Ministry, Direction of <strong>the</strong><br />
Civil Aviation where thanks to a friend officer we could consult <strong>the</strong> rolls of <strong>the</strong> tester pilots. Among <strong>the</strong> various<br />
names our attention fell on one, Mario De Bernardi, famous ace of <strong>the</strong> Italian aviation, tester pilot of <strong>the</strong> first jet<br />
aircraft and winner of <strong>the</strong> Schneider’s Cup.<br />
We phoned immediately <strong>from</strong> <strong>the</strong> Ministry to De Bernardi asking him for an appointment for <strong>the</strong> afternoon. His<br />
kindness and his simplicity really stroke us, putting ourselves at ease in explaining him our problems. We told him<br />
all <strong>the</strong> vicissitudes to end <strong>the</strong> P48 construction and our great bitterness. De Bernardi had, like us, a great passion for<br />
<strong>the</strong> flight; he reassured us and promised to be in Naples on <strong>the</strong> following Saturday.<br />
Happy, we went back home thinking that perhaps that was it and that finally we would have seen our creature flying.<br />
Punctually that Saturday De Bernardi arrived in Naples. We went to pick him up at <strong>the</strong> station and right away to <strong>the</strong><br />
airport where <strong>the</strong> plane, ready to fly was parked in front of <strong>the</strong> hangar. De Bernardi really appreciated <strong>the</strong> shape of<br />
<strong>the</strong> P48 and checked attentively every details of <strong>the</strong> machine. Gino explained to him all <strong>the</strong> aerodynamic and<br />
structural characteristics and <strong>the</strong> presumed behavior during <strong>the</strong> flight. De Bernardi sat at <strong>the</strong> piloting place; he tried<br />
for a long time all <strong>the</strong> controls <strong>the</strong>n suddenly said: turning airscrew, we are going to fly. This moment so desired,<br />
happened so suddenly that it caused me a lump in <strong>the</strong> throat. All <strong>the</strong> mechanical parts, <strong>the</strong> bolts, <strong>the</strong> lever, <strong>the</strong> various<br />
mechanisms went fast through my mind. I would have liked to postpone uselessly. Gino had launched <strong>the</strong> propeller,<br />
<strong>the</strong> engine with its powerful roar was on, and I had nothing else to do than closing <strong>the</strong> door and go away while <strong>the</strong><br />
plane started to taxi towards <strong>the</strong> runway.<br />
Gino and I started to walk almost instinctively, as if we wanted to follow it on <strong>the</strong> grass, <strong>the</strong>n we stopped to hear <strong>the</strong><br />
moment when at full speed it would take off. Nicola Genua was with us, also excited and still, with <strong>the</strong> look fixed at<br />
<strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> runway. Then <strong>the</strong> roar: <strong>the</strong> little plane started to run, after a few meters raised <strong>the</strong> little tail wheel and<br />
finally took off.<br />
It went up, and up… moved, we couldn’t hold back our tears and we all hugged, without leaving, never even for a<br />
second <strong>the</strong> look <strong>from</strong> our little wings far in <strong>the</strong> blue sky. Finally after 20 minutes <strong>the</strong> P48 landed on <strong>the</strong> runway (at<br />
<strong>the</strong> time made of grass) with a perfect landing.<br />
As soon as <strong>the</strong> propeller stopped we all run towards De Bernardi, who was already going out <strong>from</strong> <strong>the</strong> plane. Gino<br />
hugged him moved and after we had <strong>the</strong> first reports. The plane was well balanced, <strong>the</strong> controls responded perfectly,<br />
except for <strong>the</strong> ailerons, whose effectiveness resulted poor. The performance as well was satisfactorily: <strong>the</strong> maximum<br />
speed of nearly 180 km per hour was what we had expected even if <strong>the</strong> engine patched up did not give all his 65 hp.<br />
The first flight of <strong>the</strong> P48 Astore was on April 2 nd 1951 after more than 2 years of intense work, huge sacrifices,<br />
bitterness, joys and satisfactions.<br />
Naturally, <strong>the</strong> exploit at a turning point wasn’t over. We had in fact to obtain <strong>the</strong> Flight Certification for which all <strong>the</strong><br />
flight tests required by <strong>the</strong> Regulation were needed. Moreover we had to tune up <strong>the</strong> plane, making all <strong>the</strong> necessary<br />
changes to <strong>the</strong> ailerons and fixing many o<strong>the</strong>r little things that only <strong>the</strong> flight experience could suggest.<br />
In that period, <strong>the</strong> prince Gianni Caracciolo Carafa was a frequent guest of <strong>the</strong> Aero Club. He had been a brave<br />
fighter pilot during <strong>the</strong> last war and passionate about flying. We quickly became good friends and he was very<br />
interested in our activity. Having seen in <strong>the</strong> hangar <strong>the</strong> P48, he asked about <strong>the</strong> flying test made by De Bernardi and<br />
offered himself to continue <strong>the</strong> flight tests to obtain <strong>the</strong> Flight Certification.<br />
The meeting with Caracciolo had been very important for us. He was a nice person, a perfect example of a classic<br />
noble Neapolitan, he had been very important for our activity.<br />
In that period in Italy and abroad a plane <strong>com</strong>petition organized in Sicily and called Giro Aereo Internazionale of<br />
Sicily was making its name. In that year was taking place <strong>the</strong> 3 rd edition scheduled for June 8-10 (1951). The Naples<br />
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