In June 1947, a young officer of the Naples Fire Brigade, Domenico Andriello, witnessed the spectacular landing of an American military helicopter in via Caracciolo in Naples and had the intuition to also equip the Fire Brigade with a helicopter: to coordinate complex interventions from above, to search for missing people, to bring aid to the population in places that are difficult to reach and also, clearly, to contribute to putting out fires. From that moment on, everything happened very quickly: in 1949 Officer Andriello completed and published the project; in 1952 the Ministry of the Interior purchased the first Fire Brigade helicopters; in 1954, the first 3 Fire Brigade Flight Departments finally became operational, one of which was in Campania, in Naples. Since then 70 years have passed and for 40 the Campania Fire Brigade’s Flight Department has been operating in Pontecagnano where, on 20 June, the important anniversary will be celebrated. At the ceremony, during which the volume “Il Volo dei Draghi” will be presented. The Air Component of the Fire Brigade in a story through images” by photographer Massimo Sestini, the highest regional authorities and the Province of Salerno and the institutional, administrative and technical leaders of the Department of Fire Brigade, Public Rescue and Civil Defense will be present : Emanuele Prisco, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of the Interior, Renato Franceschelli, Head of the Fire Department, Carlo Dall’Oppio, Head of the National Fire Brigade.
