Mario Pezzi (9 November 1898 – 26 August 1968) was an Italian

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...

known worldwide for his flight in which he achieved greater height than any other pilot in a propeller-powered

airplane An airplane (American English), or aeroplane (Commonwealth English), informally plane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, Propeller (aircraft), propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a vari ...

Biography

Pezzi was born on 9 November 1898. He had one brother,

Enrico Enrico is both an Italian masculine given name and a surname, Enrico means homeowner, or king, derived from '' Heinrich'' of Germanic origin. It is also a given name in Ladino. Equivalents in other languages are Henry ( English), Henri ( French), ...

, who also grew up to be a

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

in the

Italian Air Force The Italian Air Force (; AM, ) is the air force of the Italy, Italian Republic. The Italian Air Force was founded as an independent service arm on 28 March 1923 by Victor Emmanuel III of Italy, King Victor Emmanuel III as the ("Royal Air Force ...

. Mario joined the

Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

in October 1917, and the next year earned the rank of second lieutenant. He received his pilot's license in 1926. The next year he became part of the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, Enlisted rank, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commanding officer, commander of a ...

, rising to Cabinet of the Defense Ministry in 1931. After Pezzi's record flight, he was decorated with the Gold Medal of Aeronautic Valor and promoted

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

. Later he also became

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

Aeronautics Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design process, design, and manufacturing of air flight-capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. While the term originally referred ...

as well as Chief of the General Staff. From 1950 to 1955, Pezzi worked as Head of Cabinet of the Minister and, subsequently, General Secretary of Aeronautics. Pezzi is rightly considered an aeronautics and astronautics pioneer in Italy not only for his altitude records: he was the man who chose

Luigi Broglio Luigi Broglio (11 November 1911 – 14 January 2001), was an Italian aerospace engineer, airforce lieutenant colonel and dean of the school of aeronautical engineering at the University of Rome La Sapienza. Known as "the Italian von Braun", he i ...

to lead the ITAF Ammunition Research Unit, responsible for rockets and missiles research, leading the way to future space exploration in Italy. Broglio himself described that meeting with Pezzi: "In 1956, secretary-general of ITAF Pezzi, the man famous for his altitude flight records, asked me to replace the officer responsible for the ITAF Ammunition Research Unit, a branch of the Service dealing with rockets and missiles too. I answered that it was not my field, my field being airplanes, not rockets. Pezzi objected: "Then give me the name of some top brass who is expert in that field". I answered again no, I did not know anyone with such a capability. "Well, then the job is yours" was Pezzi's conclusion.

Record Flight

Pezzi established his record above Montecelio (

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

) aboard a

Caproni Ca.161 The Caproni Ca.161 was an aircraft built in Italy in 1936, in an attempt to set a new world flight altitude record, altitude record. It was a conventional biplane with two-bay, Stagger (aviation), staggered wings of equal span, based on Caproni ...

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

with a

Piaggio Piaggio Group () is an Italian motor vehicle manufacturer, which produces a range of two-wheeled motor vehicles and compact commercial vehicles under five brands: Piaggio, Vespa, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi and Derbi. Its corporate headquarters are ...

motor and pressurised airtight cabin, wearing a special pressure suit picture
/sup> and reaching a height of 17,083 m (56,047 ft). This record still stands today. On 8 May 1937 Pezzi took off from the Guidonia-Montecelio base in a Caproni Ca161 aircraft powered by a 14 cyl. double stellar engine supercharged by a double centrifugal 750 hp compressor. Piloting this aircraft he climbed to 15,655 m (51,362 ft). Pezzi wore a special electrically heated pressurized suit and an airtight helmet, just like a modern astronaut. In the Caproni hangars in the meantime work went on ceaselessly to produce a new version of the aircraft, the Ca161bis designed by engineer Verduzio. Its cockpit was embedded in an air-tight shell, the first one to be built in the history of flight. The great expectations on this machine were soon fulfilled: on 22 October 1938 Pezzi attained a new world record for altitude in a propeller-driven, piston-engined aircraft (17,083 m, 56,047 ft), a record still unbeaten today. In those years Americans, Germans, English and French fought for this record, and Italy entered the contest with 14,433 m (47,355 ft) in 1934 from Donates on his

Caproni Ca.113 The Caproni Ca.113 was an advanced Trainer (aircraft), training biplane produced in Italy and Bulgaria in the early 1930s. Designed as a follow-on to the Caproni Ca.100, Ca.100, it was a more powerful and robust aircraft capable of aerobatics. It ...

with a

Pegaso Pegaso (, "Pegasus") was a Spanish manufacturer of trucks, buses, tractors, armored vehicles, and, for a while, to train apprentices, and have a good brand image, some sports cars. The parent company, Enasa, was created in 1946 and based in t ...

motor. In 1936, the Englishman

Francis Ronald Swain Air Commodore Francis Ronald Downs Swain, (31 August 1903 – 28 September 1989) was a British Royal Air Force pilot who held the World Altitude Record for airplanes from 1936 to 1938. Early life and career Swain was born on 31 August 1903 an ...

achieved 15,230 m (49,970 ft) with a Bristol 138; but in the same year Pezzi surpassed this, reaching 15,635 m (51,300 ft) aboard a Ca.161. In 1937, the Englishman M.J. Adam in his turn exceeded it with 16,440 m (53,940 ft) to edge ahead once again in the Bristol 138. On 22 October the following year, Pezzi achieved his still-valid world record for propeller aircraft with a height of 17,083 m (56,046.6 feet). As a young man, Pezzi had entered a career in aeronautics, becoming a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

, and in 1934 he had been named commander of the unit for the record flight from Montecelio. He became a high official and received many decorations. In the post-war period he was general secretary of Aeronautics and subsequently head of Cabinet of the Defense Ministry.

References

External links

Enrico Pezzi's Family Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pezzi, Mario Italian aviators 1898 births 1968 deaths Caproni people Flight altitude record holders Recipients of the Medal of Aeronautic Valor Italian aviation record holders