Amongst pilots from the 20th century, Di Pinedo stands out as one of the most skilled aviators of his time. The pilot, raised in aristocracy and later hardened by war, earned his acclaim for flying distances previously believed to be impossible; such feats have put him on the Longines Honor Roll forevermore.
Born into a fairly well-off family in Naples, 1890, Pinedo spent much of his youth learning art and literature, gaining a love of music in particular. Enrolling in the Italian Naval academy at 18, he graduated three short years later (1911) and bore witness to the Italo-Turkish war of 1911-1912. It was there that Italy’s first use of planes in warfare was recorded- and it was the first time that Francesco Di Pinedo saw aviation as a science in action. He fell in love, enrolling in the air service of the Regia Maria in 1917 to fight in the Great War for Italy. Flying reconnaissance missions earned him experience and in turn, skill. Pinedo was amongst the best of the best for his time, but remained distinct from the rest in his profession. While other aviators performed tricks in the air and partook in barnstorming as a sport, he opted out; instead, he was the equivalent of aviation’s recluse, avoiding publicity and only speaking upon things he believed mattered, such as the funding of innovations in seaplanes (planes that could land and take off within water) and the importance of making global air travel accessible.
Tri-Continental: an 35,000 mile milestone
In 1925, Pinedo sought to impress upon the public the value of seaplanes; inspired by a preceding flight in 1920 by aviators Arturo Ferrarain and Guido Masiero, Pinedo argued that a seaplane would have been the better choice for their 11,000 mile voyage from Rome to Tokyo, on account of the frequent wrecks and damages to their aircraft through the journey. Pinedo planned a trip over three times long to verify his stance: seaplanes were the future of travel. No exceptions.
Pinedo selected the Gennariallo, a SIAI S.16ter which was more boat than plane; coined a flying-boat, himself and his mechanic (Ernesto Campanelli) managed to traverse 35000 miles over the course of 202 days, a feat that earned him the title of Marquis from Victor Emmanuel III- the King of Italy.
Their departure from Rome on the 21st of April, 1925 led Pinedo across various states. Leros in Greece, Baghdad in Iraq and both Bushehr and Chabar in Persia melted to various stops in British India, such as Karachi, Bombay, Cocanada and Calcutta. Over the course of weeks, Pinedo and Campanelli flew into Burma, Siam and British Malaya before making his way to the Indies and Australia. The pair touched down in Melbourne, Australia after the exhaustive journey on the 10th of June, where they would remain for a little over a month.
On the 16th of July, Pinedo and Campanelli departed once more to Sydney, spending another three weeks, before resuming their trip. Alternatively, rather than immediately cycle back, the two jumped through various states in Asia, such as the Philippines, Formosa, China and Korea before finally making their way to Japan- their arrival was on the 26th of September.
The return journey to Rome covered approximately 15,000 miles in merely 22 days- a remarkable achievement for the era. The duo arrived in Rome on November 7, 1925, to overwhelming adulation from the Italian public and the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale delegated Pinedo the FAI gold medal; the most prestigious award possible. In total, the expedition covered roughly 35,000 miles over 370 hours of flight time in 80 stages across 202 days. Flight magazine described it as “the most extensive aerial tour on record.”
Quadruple-Continental: Mato Grosso’s first conquerors.
Impressed by Pinedo’s triumph, Mussolini suggested an even more ambitious undertaking: a flight to the Western Hemisphere which could inspire pride among Italian-descended immigrants throughout the US states. Thus, Pinedo plotted the ‘Four Continents’ flight, its purpose apparent in its name. Taking place within two planes, their voyage and flight took them across Africa, the Atlantic, South America to Canada- then right back to Rome.
Departing on the 13th of February, 1927, Pinedo, co-pilot Capitano Carlo Del Prete and his mechanic Vitale Zacchetti boarded the reliable seaplane Santa Maria to complete the journey, a Savoia-Marchetti S.55. The triplet immediately ran into peril, however. Sweltering conditions and a collision with a naval ship (the Almirante Barroso) hampered the flight’s success until they landed at Natal in Brazil. From there, the Santa Maria and her crew had better (albeit brief) luck.
Their journey took them to Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Montevideo, and Asunción before they accomplished a historic feat: crossing Brazil’s formidable Mato Grosso region, where no aircraft had ventured before. Landing at Manaus on March 20, they continued through British Guiana and the Caribbean, reaching New Orleans on March 29, 1927, marking it the first foreign aircraft to fly into the United States.
Tragedy struck at Arizona’s Theodore Roosevelt Lake. Carelessly discarded, a cigarette ignited gasoline fumes and the Santa Maria was consumed in flames, sinking to the lake bottom. Mussolini hastily shipped a replacement aircraft to New York, where it arrived on May 1. Christened Santa Maria II, it bore the motto “post fata resurgo” (after death I resurrect) and ultimately became the aircraft that Pinedo would complete his flight with.
The crew continued their tour, visiting various states such as Boston, Charleston and Chicago amongst others. A planned crossing of the Atlantic had been foiled again for the Santa Maria II, due to both hostile weather and straggling fuel shortages that ultimately landed the seaplane in the ocean’s water; ultimately, the help of local Portuguese fishermen and an Italian steamer towed the plane for the final 200 miles to the Azores, a cluster of Islands off of Portugal.
After repairs, they completed the crossing, stopping in Portugal and Spain before a triumphant landing at Ostia’s harbor outside Rome on June 16, 1927. The flight had covered 29,180 miles over 124 days, crossing the Atlantic twice, an absolute marvel of the human spirit and ambition.
Francesco Di Pinedo received a hero’s welcome. Popular songs celebrated his achievement, banquets honored his courage, and accolades poured in. Mussolini promoted him to air brigade general and proclaimed him the “Messenger of Italy” and “Lord of Distances.” The United Kingdom awarded him the prestigious Air Force Cross, in recognition of his extraordinary accomplishments.
The Death of a Shooting Star
Pinedo’s success later became the focus of Regia Aeronautica- the royal air force of the Italian kingdom, led by the General Italo Balbo; near synonymous with fascism, Pinedo’s work with the general saw to the slow decline of his career and most abruptly, his death.
Intent on glorifying the image of Italy, Balbo had various flights drawn and flown, an event that Pinedo lent his helping hand with. However, Balbo’s vision for the Regia Aeronautica began to diverge from Pinedo’s- he limited Italian support of air travel to exclusively flights flown in mass formation rather than solo planes and distance, something that the Messenger of Italy couldn’t abide by. He ended up placed on leave and before long, escaped Italy entirely under the false name of ‘Mr. Smith’, making his way to New York and the United States. Shortly after this, Pinedo declared that he was to attempt a nonstop, 6300 mile flight from New York to Iraq- it would have been his third time to cross the Atlantic by flight.
A momentous occasion, Pinedo allowed for the landing to be videotaped, consulting the camera with a quick, reserved message before boarding the Ballanca monoplane, which he’d chosen for his journey.
On the 2nd of February, 1933, the weather was exceptionally hostile; rain, wind and dreary weather buffeted the runway as Ballanca gained traction across the flat concrete. Pinedo lost complete control of the vehicle, seen skittering and running across the runway into the surrounding field as winds thrashed the aircraft both this way and that. Finally, it flipped over, its wings breaking before the engine finally combusted in an unsurvivable explosion. The entirety of the event was captured upon film.
Aviator, dreamer and aeronaut, Francesco di Pinedo did what very few had ever done before, crossing the great swathe of the Atlantic and hopping across entire continents to push the science of air travel to its very limits.
His contribution to aviation is a testament to his courage and tenacity.
Footnotes
- Anonymous, ‘Rome-Tokyo-Rome: Marquis de Pinedo’s Grand Air Tour Successfully Concluded,’ Flight, (November 12, 1925), pp. 756. https://www.flightglobal.com/FlightPDFArchive/1925/1925%20-%200756.PDF (date accessed: 24/08/16).
- ItalyStl, ‘Biographical Background. Francesco de Pinedo.’ The Lord of Distances. A commemorative tribute to the life and achievements of Francesco de Pinedo, (ItalyStl. 2002). http://www.italystl.com/pride/page9.htm (date accessed 23/08/16).
- ItalyStl, ‘Biographical Background. Francesco de Pinedo.’ The Lord of Distances. A commemorative tribute to the life and achievements of Francesco de Pinedo, (ItalyStl. 2002). http://www.italystl.com/pride/page9.htm (date accessed 23/08/16).
- ItalyStl, ‘Biographical Background. Francesco de Pinedo.’ The Lord of Distances. A commemorative tribute to the life and achievements of Francesco de Pinedo, (ItalyStl. 2002). http://www.italystl.com/pride/page9.htm (date accessed 23/08/16).
- ItalyStl, ‘Biographical Background. Francesco de Pinedo.’ The Lord of Distances. A commemorative tribute to the life and achievements of Francesco de Pinedo, (ItalyStl. 2002). http://www.italystl.com/pride/page9.htm (date accessed 23/08/16).
- Bomberguy, ‘Failed attempts – Francesco de Pinedo’ (uploaded to Youtube: Feb 20th 2008, Originally published by Time magazine: 1933). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gpB9KLd9Bc (date accessed 23/08/16).
- ItalyStl, ‘Biographical Background. Francesco de Pinedo.’ The Lord of Distances. A commemorative tribute to the life and achievements of Francesco de Pinedo, (ItalyStl. 2002). http://www.italystl.com/pride/page9.htm (date accessed 23/08/16).
Bibliography
Anonymous, ‘Biographical Background. Francesco de Pinedo.’ The Lord of Distances. A commemorative tribute to the life and achievements of Francesco de Pinedo, (ItalyStl. 2002), http://www.italystl.com/pride/page9.htm
Anonymous, ‘Rome-Tokyo-Rome: Marquis de Pinedo’s Grand Air Tour Successfully Concluded,’ Flight, (November 12, 1925), pp. 756. https://www.flightglobal.com/FlightPDFArchive/1925/1925%20-%200756.PDF
Bomberguy, ‘Failed attempts – Francesco de Pinedo’ (uploaded to Youtube: Feb 20th 2008, Originally published by Time magazine: 1933), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gpB9KLd9Bc
Gloria, Maria. ‘Aviation Pioneer Francesco de Pinedo’ L’Italo-Americano, (L’Italo American Foundation, April 27, 2012), http://www.italoamericano.org/story/2012-4-26/FrancescoDePinedo