Person
Paolo Gianassi
Also known as Colonnello Gianassi, Gianassi
- Colonel, Italian Air Force; in 1966 air traffic controller in the tower at San Damiano (Piacenza)
Paolo Gianassi is a retired colonel of the Italian Air Force, named as such by the association Spazio Tesla, which recorded his testimony. On 17 October 1966 he was, on his own account, the air traffic controller on duty in the tower of the San Damiano airfield near Piacenza, home of the 50° Stormo; he says he was not a pilot.
In an interview with Alberto Negri, published in 2022, he recalled following on the radio a young pilot, Sottotenente Vittorino Bocca, who on an engine test flight in an F-84 chased a bright, silvery object that kept drawing away until the jet reached its ceiling. He places the episode at ten to fifteen minutes and recalls an article in the Gazzetta di Parma a few days later.
Sources: Testimony of Col. Paolo Gianassi to Alberto Negri (Spazio Tesla, YouTube, March 2022)
Facts and claims
- claimed Gianassi says that on the day of the sighting "io ero il controllore di servizio quel giorno" in the San Damiano tower. (The archive's translation: "I was the controller on duty that day.") — Paolo Gianassi Source: Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) at 1:08
- claimed He says Sottotenente Vittorino Bocca was flying alone in an F-84 on an engine test flight in the reserved area south of the airfield. — Paolo Gianassi Source: Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) at 1:20
- claimed He recalls Bocca asking on the radio what a bright, silvery thing he could see was, and saying he would go and look. — Paolo Gianassi Source: Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) at 2:21
- claimed He recalls Bocca's commentary as he chased it, "adesso mi avvicino, si allontana, mi avvicino, si allontana", until the F-84 reached its ceiling: "io più su di così non posso andare". (The archive's translation: "now I'm getting closer, it moves away…"; "I can't go any higher than this.") — Paolo Gianassi Source: Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) at 3:34
- claimed Gianassi describes no hostility, "è come un gioco a rimpiattino", and says the tower had only radio and no instruments that could have detected the object. (The archive's translation: "it's like a game of hide-and-seek.") — Paolo Gianassi Source: Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) at 5:16
- claimed He recalls "un articolo sul giornale della Gazzetta di Parma" a few days later, while Piacenza's Libertà published nothing, and that the episode lasted ten minutes to a quarter of an hour. (The archive's translation: "an article in the Gazzetta di Parma.") — Paolo Gianassi Source: Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) at 6:10
- claimed He says that of about forty pilots at San Damiano at the time, six or seven were NCOs, among them Golinelli. — Paolo Gianassi Source: Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) at 8:03
Connected files
Incidents
- San Damiano air base F-84 chases (Piacenza, Italy, 1966) (witness) — Controller on duty in the San Damiano tower; followed Sottotenente Bocca's chase on the radio
People
- Dante Golinelli (served with) — Names Golinelli among the six or seven NCO pilots at San Damiano in 1966
Videos
- Paolo Gianassi, tower controller at San Damiano on 17 October 1966 (Spazio Tesla, 2022) (appears in)