Italian Navy


The Italian Navy is the Navy of the Italian Republic. It is one of the four branches of Italian Armed Forces and was formed in 1946 from what remained of the Regia Marina after World War II. As of August 2014, the Italian Navy had a strength of 30,923 active personnel with approximately 184 vessels in service, including minor auxiliary vessels. It is considered a multiregional and a blue-water navy.

History

Before and during World War II

The Regia Marina was formed on 17 March 1861, after the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. The Italian Navy assumed its present name after the Italian monarchy was abolished following a popular referendum held on 2 June 1946.

After World War II

At the end of its five years involvement in World War II, Italy was a devastated nation. After the end of hostilities the Regia Marina, which at the beginning of the war was the fourth largest navy in the world with a mix of modernised and new battleships, started a long and complex rebuilding process. The important combat contributions of the Italian naval forces after the signing of the armistice with the Allies on 8 September 1943, and the subsequent cooperation agreement on 23 September 1943, left the Regia Marina in a poor condition, with much of its infrastructure and bases unusable and its ports mined and blocked by sunken ships. However, a large number of its naval units had survived the war, albeit in a low efficiency state, which was due to the conflict and the age of many vessels. The vessels that remained were:
The peace treaty signed on 10 February 1947 in Paris was onerous for Regia Marina. Apart from territorial and material losses, also the following restrictions were imposed:
, 1951
The treaty also ordered Italy to put the following ships at the disposals of the victorious nations United States, Soviet Union, Great Britain, France, Greece, Yugoslavia and Albania as war compensation:
Great changes in the international political situation, which were developing into the Cold War, convinced the United Kingdom and United States to discontinue the transfer of Italy's capital ships as war reparations. Some had already been dismantled in La Spezia between 1948 and 1955, including the aircraft carrier. However, the Soviet Union demanded the surrender of the battleship Giulio Cesare and other naval units designated for transfer. The cruisers Attilio Regolo and Scipione Africano became the French Chateaurenault and Guichen, while became the Greek Elli. After break up and/or transfers, only a small part of the fleet remained to be recommissioned into the Marina. As Western attention turned to the Soviets and the Mediterranean Sea, Italian seas became one of the main sites of confrontation between the two superpowers, contributing to the re-emergence of Italy's naval importance thanks to her strategic geographical position.
With the new elections in 1946, the Kingdom of Italy became a Republic, and the Regia Marina took the name of Marina Militare. As the Marshall Plan began to rebuild Italy and Europe was rapidly being divided into two geopolitically antagonistic blocs, Italy began talks with the United States to guarantee adequate security considerations. The US government in Washington wished to keep its own installations on the Italian Peninsula and relaxed the Treaty restrictions by including Italy in the Mutual Defense Assistance Programme. On 4 April 1949, Italy joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and, in order for the navy to contribute actively in the organization, the Treaty restrictions were definitively repealed by the end of 1951, with the consent of all of Western nations.
, 2013
Within NATO, the Italian Navy was assigned combat control of the Adriatic Sea and Strait of Otranto, as well as the defence of the naval routes through the Tyrrhenian Sea. To ensure these tasks a "Studio sul potenziamento della Marina italiana in relazione al Patto Atlantico" was undertaken, which researched the structures and the methods for the development of the navy.

Naval ensign

The ensign of the Italian Navy is the Flag of Italy bearing the coat of arms of the Italian Navy. The shield's quarters refer to the four Medieval Italian Maritime Republics:
The coat of arms is surmounted by a golden crown, which distinguishes military vessels from those of the merchant navy.
The crown, "corona rostrata", was proposed in 1939 as a conjectural link to the Roman navy by Admiral Domenico Cavagnari, then a member of the Chamber of Fasces and Corporations in the Fascist Government. In the proposal, Adm. Cavagnari wrote that "in order to recall the common origin from the Roman mariners, the Insignia will be surmounted by the towered Crown with rostra, the emblem of honour and valour the Roman Senate awarded to the leaders of naval victories, conquerors of lands and cities across the seas".
A further difference is that St. Mark's lion, symbolising the Republic of Venice, does not hold the gospel in its paw and is wielding a sword instead: such an image is consistent with the pictorial tradition from Venetian history, in which the book is shown open during peacetime and closed during wartime.

Structure and organisation

Organization

In 2012 the Navy began a restructuring process that will see a 21% decrease in personnel by 2025. A new structure was implemented in January 2014.
PositionItalian titleRankIncumbent
Chief of Staff of the NavyCapo di Stato Maggiore della MarinaAdmiralGiuseppe Cavo Dragone
Deputy Chief of Staff of the NavySottocapo di Stato Maggiore della MarinaVice AdmiralPaolo Treu
Commander in Chief Naval FleetComandante in Capo della Squadra Navale Vice AdmiralDonato Marzano
Commander Schools CommandComandante Scuole Vice AdmiralSalvatore Ruzittu
Commander Logistics CommandComandante Logistico Vice AdmiralRaffaele Caruso

Coast Guard

The Corps of the Port Captaincies – Coast Guard is the coast guard of Italy and is part of the Italian Navy under the control of the Ministry of Infrastructures and Transports. In Italy, it is commonly known as simply the Guardia costiera. The Coast Guard has approximately 11 000 staff.

Corps

The Italian Navy is divided into seven corps and one:
  • Corpo di stato maggiore – Staff Officers Corps
  • Corpo del genio navale – Navy Engineers Corps
  • Corpo sanitario militare marittimo – Maritime Military Medical Corps for medics; for Pharmacists
  • Corpo di commissariato militare marittimo – Military Maritime Commissariat Corps
  • Corpo delle capitanerie di porto – Port Captaincies Corps the coast guard
  • Corpo degli equipaggi militari marittimi – Military Maritime Crews Corps

    Fleet

Command of the Italian Fleet and Naval aviation falls under Commander in Chief Naval Fleet

Equipment

Ships and submarines

Today's Italian Navy is a modern navy with ships of every type. The fleet is in continuous evolution, and as of today oceangoing fleet units include: 2 light aircraft carriers, 3 amphibious assault ships, 4 destroyers, 13 frigates and 8 attack submarines. Patrol and littoral warfare units include: 10 offshore patrol vessels. 10 mine countermeasure vessels, four coastal patrol boats, and a varied fleet of auxiliary ships are also in service.
The flagship of the fleet is the carrier Cavour.

Aircraft

The Italian Navy operates a diverse fleet of aircraft including fixed-wing, rotary and UAVs.

Future

  • 2 x Bergamini-class general purpose frigates, one on sea trials, the other being built to replace Maestrale-class frigates between 2020 and 2021;
The 2014 Naval Act allocated Euro 5.4 billion for the following vessels:
  • 1 x Trieste landing helicopter dock, for commissioning in 2022 to replace CVL Giuseppe Garibaldi
  • 1 x Vulcano-class logistic support ship, for commissioning in 2020 to replace Stromboli
  • 7 x Thaon di Revel-class offshore patrol vessels, for commissioning between 2021–2026, with three more on option
The 2017 budget allocated 12.8 billion for the following ships:
The 2018 budget allocated about 1 Billion Euros for:
  • 2 x U212NFS attack submarines, for commissioning in 2025–2026, with two more on option to maintain a fleet of eight submarines
Planned:
For the Naval Aviation the Navy plans to expand for replace the following assets:
For the Marine Brigade "San Marco" the Navy plans to acquire following assets:
  • 72 x ACV 1.1 amphibious 8x8 combat vehicles
  • 90 x VTMM Orso armored 4x4 vehicles

    Rank structure


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