US F-16s at Aviano

Aviano Air Base is a base of the United States Air Force, in the northeastern part of Italy, at the foot of the Italian Alps, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of Pordenone. Until 1 November 2005, it was the headquarters for the Sixteenth Air Force and the 31st Fighter Wing. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1485x617, 95 KB) USAF F-16s at the Aviano Air Force base. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1485x617, 95 KB) USAF F-16s at the Aviano Air Force base. ... The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a modern multi-role jet fighter aircraft built in the United States and used by dozens of countries all over the world. ... Aviano, 46°04′ N 12°35′ E, is a town and comune of Pordenone province at the foot of the Dolomites mountain range in northern Italy. ... The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerospace branch of the United States armed forces. ... The West face of the Petit Dru above the Chamonix valley near the Mer de Glace. ... A mile is any of a number of units of distance, each in the magnitude of 1–10 km. ... A kilometer (Commonwealth spelling: kilometre), symbol: km is a unit of length in the metric system equal to 1,000 metres (from the Greek words χίλια (khilia) = thousand and μέτρο (metro) = count/measure). ... Pordenone is a city, comune and province of northeast Italy in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. ... November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 60 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sixteenth Air Force is the Warfighting Headquarters for United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) . It is headquartered at Ramstein AB, Germany. ...

History

Pre-dating the U.S. Air Force, Aviano Air Base was established by Italy in 1911. During World War I, Italy used the airfield in missions against the Austro-German armies. At that time, two Italian aviators, Captain Maurizio Pagliano and Lieutenant Luigi Gori, conducted an unauthorized, but heroic and successful, air raid on the Austrian naval yards in Pula, in what was then Yugoslavia. In their honor, the base's name was officially changed to Aeroporto Pagliano e Gori, in 1919. 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... Combatants Allies: Serbia, Russia, France, Romania, Belgium, British Empire, United States, Italy, and others Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire Casualties Military dead: 5 million Civilian deaths: 3 million Total of dead: 8 million Military dead: 4 million Civilian deaths: 3 million Total dead: 7 million The First... Aerial picture of Pula. ... Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija in all south Slavic languages, in Serbian and Macedonian Cyrillic Југославија) is a term used for three separate but successive political entities that existed during most of the 20th century on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe. ... 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

During World War II, both the Italian Air Force and the German Luftwaffe flew missions from Aeroporto Pagliano e Gori. British forces captured the base in 1945; they conducted air operations there until 1947, when the Italian Air Force resumed operational use of the airport. The Italian Air Force used the base until 1954. Combatants Allies: Poland, British Commonwealth, France/Free France, Soviet Union, United States, China, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, and others Casualties Military dead: 17 million Civilian dead: 33 million Total dead: 50 million Military dead: 8 million Civilian dead: 4 million Total dead: 12 million World War II... The Aeronautica Militare Italiana is the Italian air force. ... The Deutsche Luftwaffe or (German: Air Arm, IPA: [luftvafÉ™]) is the commonly used term for the German air force. ... 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In 1954, the U.S. and Italian governments signed a joint-use agreement that brought the base into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Headquarters of the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) officially activated the airfield on 15 February 1955. In the 1950s–1980s, Aviano hosted rotational fighter deployments in support of NATO alert commitments and Air Force weapons-training deployments. During this time the base has been a watching eye on the many recovering communist nations in South East Europe. NATO 2002 Summit The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), sometimes called North Atlantic Alliance, Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for defence collaboration established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on April 4, 1949. ... Emblem of the U.S. Air Forces in Europe. ... February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

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• Aviano Air Base (globalsecurity.org)
• Official site