Macchi C.205 and pilot remains found

[Lightninglover]

A Macchi C.205 and pilots remains were found near Rome. Hopefully they can find his next of kin after all these years.

Click right arrow on photo to see more.

http://news.discovery.com/history/itali ... 141027.htm

[Wilson]

Seventy years after a bombing raid that devastated the city of Padua during the Second World War, a group of archaeological explorers known as Romagna Air Finders has been able to find and recover the body of Lieutenant Guerrino Bortolani, who died trying to defend the city besieged by the allies. Bortolani had been flying the best Italian fighter aircraft, the Macchi C.205, in a squadron led by renowned Italian ace Adriano Visconti.

DIGGING ABOVE Research on Lt. Bortolani started in 2006 after the discovery of the body and the plane of Lt. Giobatta Boscutti, shot down in the same fight. Since then, the Romagna Air Finders had been listening to eyewitnesses of that terrible bombing trying to figure out where the aircraft crashed.

THE EYEWITNESS Finally, the team interviewed an octogenarian who clearly remembered the place where the plane fell. They then began to search for the owner of the agricultural land where the plane was buried. Once the owner was found, a survey was conducted with metal detectors and depth sensors. The first two attempts went empty, but the discovery of fragments of aircraft quality aluminum led the team to believe this was the right place. “The final attempt was made in a field adjacent to that shown by our witness and, finally, the discovery of a large number of fragments convinced us that this was to be the crash site," said Pier Paolo Venturi, engaged in recovery operations.

THE DISCOVERY OF THE LIEUTENANT “At that point we started the bureaucracy to obtain the necessary permits to start the excavation. A significant problem was represented by a drainage ditch," said Venturi. On the morning of September 26, 2014, the volunteers of the Romagna Air Finders began digging. The excavator started to remove sand, dirt and mud, and soon evidence emerged that the plane had hit right there: a wheel from the landing gear, the tail wheel, engine parts and fuselage stringers. Then, what everyone was waiting for: the unopened parachute upon which the pilot sat. Finally, after more than 70 years, the body of a boy of 27 years who died in aerial combat to protect the city was extracted from the earth.

A MINUTE OF SILENCE Operations continued the next day to recover even more material, such as the cylinder banks of the DB605 engine, the yoke, pedals, flight instruments and various parts of the fuselage. The volunteers then proceeded to close the excavation and restore the land. Following a blessing of the remains by the local priest, the coroner delivered his body to the authorities of the town of Bagnoli di Sopra. A minute of silence in memory of Lieutenant Bortolani and all the fallen concluded the touching and exciting two days of digging.

[Wilson]

12/03/44 HUNT GROUP CONTROL
LEAD HUNTING OFFICE
REPORT ON THE COMPLTED ACTION THE DAY OF MARCH 11, 1944

FLIGHT LOCATION: Mouth of the Po River, Verona, Treviso, Padua, Venezia.-

SPECIFIC ACTION: Fighters on alert.-

TIME OF AIRCRAFT DEPARTURE: 11.03.-

NUMBER AND TYPE OF AIRCRAFT USED: 36 Macchi C.205.-

NAME OF HEAD OF TRAINING: Captain VISCONTI, Adriano (Lt. AMEDEO, Guidi, Lt. LIGUGNANA, Mario).-

REPORT ON COMPLETED ACTION: Take off at 11:03 hours with flying order: maximum speed to Gorizia. With the next radio order patrol reaches the mouth of the Po River. It crosses formations of enemy bombers on a Southwest route with the benefit of altitude. The right patrol (Lt. AMEDEO) starts attacking the bombers. The group leader (Captain VISCONTI) agrees with the numbers of fighters attacking bombers directly; patrol spotted several Lightnings, maneuver to prevent the attack of the latter to our flight. The fight against the Boeing Fortresses and Thunderbolt lasts from 11:40 to 12:03.

ACHIEVEMENTS: Eight Thunderbolts definitely shot down, one probable, four damaged. Three Boeing Fortresses destroyed, twelve damaged.

AIRCRAFT LOST DURING THE ACTION: Macchi C.205 MM 92896 piloted by Lt. CASTELLANI, Bruno, who fell into the sea in Venice. Macchi C.205 MM 92279 piloted by Lt. BOSCUTTI, Giobatta, and Macchi C.205 MM 92301 piloted by Lt. BORTOLANI, Guerrino, did not return. Macchi C.205 MM 92264 piloted by Lt. STAR, Andrea, crash landed near the Adriatic Sea (pilot unharmed).

AIRCRAFT DAMAGED IN FLIGHT: None.

This command has taken steps to inform the family of Lt. CASTELLANI, Bruno, deceased. The funeral will take place in Udine, Monday at16:30.

Last edited by Wilson on Sat Nov 08, 2014 12:19 am, edited 1 time in total.

[Wilson]

The Allied bombing mission was flown by the 15th Air Force (97th, 301st, 2nd and 99th BG). One hundred eleven B-17s dropped more than 300 tons of bombs. P-47s of the 325th FG provided the escort. The target was the railway hub in Padua.

Apparently as the B-17s were getting ready to make their bomb run, another bombing mission in transit flew under the B-17s. (They were possibly B-24s). Consequently, only half of the B-17s were able to drop their bombs. The remainder had to fly a second circuit over the target. The delay allowed the Italian fighters of 1st Group, along with JG/77 and JG/53, to intercept and attack.

The P-47s, unfortunately, had left with the first half of the B-17s. They quickly returned and engaged in combat, but not before the B-17s had been attacked.

[tom d. friedman]

finding an italian crash site is rarer than finding a japanese one!! especially an axis warbird that rare. wilson, thank you for all the info, you answered most of my questions before i could even ask them. what will become of the wreckage??

[Wilson]

You're welcome, Tom.

I knew about the 2006 recovery, but wasn’t aware they found the second Macchi until I saw Lightning Lover’s post. That got me wanting more information, too.

Romagna Air Finders displays the items they recover at various public events. It often leads to tips about other crash sites. That’s how they found the first Macchi.

"It was about noon and in the sky one of the many air battles was taking place. I saw an aircraft dive, clearly out of control, and then heard a loud bang and saw a big cloud of smoke. The other kids and I immediately went to the disaster site. The scene was nothing short of chilling. Smoke, fire and a big hole with thick, black smoke coming out. Around the pit were the destroyed wings and scattered pieces of the aircraft everywhere. And that is where I saw for the first time a corpse, or better to say parts of it ... We did not understand exactly what had happened. To us children it was almost a game. That day the war had come before me with all its cruelty. A few minutes later the soldiers of the Republican National Guard came and recovered the few remains of the pilot. They were placed in a wooden box which was then delivered to the parish priest. An attempt was made to recover more of the pilot’s body, but the operation was abandoned shortly thereafter due to the ingress of water into the hole."
Mirko Tesser

He knew a woman who had also witnessed the crash as a child. She was touched that after so many years there were still people who felt these aviators needed to be recovered and given a proper burial. She provided additional information confirming that the majority of the pilot’s body had not been recovered because it was trapped underneath part of the wing flap.

Both Macchis went in hard. Wings and other items on the surface got cleaned up quickly. The rest was covered up and forgotten. The excavations primarily have yielded engine and propeller pieces, cockpit components and tail wheels – and, of course, the pilots.

[Richard W.]

Do you know how many P-47 losses the 325th reported for the day?

The Italian claims sound a lot like the typical exaggerations you find on all sides of that war.

[Wilson]

Do you know how many P-47 losses the 325th reported for the day?

The Italian claims sound a lot like the typical exaggerations you find on all sides of that war.

No, unfortunately I don't. I was hoping someone with that information would join in. I believe the B-17 losses were two, with seven damaged (not 3 &12). The Germans were involved in the fight, too, so the P-47 claims may also include their claims.

I'm a big fan of the Christopher Shores style of research that goes through the records of all involved. It's interesting to see what is claimed versus what actually happened.

[VintageAviationNews]

finding an italian crash site is rarer than finding a japanese one!! especially an axis warbird that rare. wilson, thank you for all the info, you answered most of my questions before i could even ask them. what will become of the wreckage??

Actually not at all. Both Axis and Allies airplanes are constantly being found in Italy.

Here is another one found on 10/29 at the bottom of Lago di Bolsena :

http://www.tusciaweb.eu/2014/11/relitto ... rofondita/

[tom d. friedman]

obviously very deep. is the drawing reflective of the plane's position in the water??