Italian Navy & Air Force Elite Units & Special Forces 1940–45 by Piero Crociani

Italian Navy & Air Force Elite Units & Special Forces 1940–45 by Piero Crociani

This volume assesses the formidable Special Forces fielded by Italy's navy and air force in World War II. Italian Navy Special Forces were particularly active and respected in the Mediterranean, where 10th Motor-Torpedo Boat Flotilla used frogmen, 'two-man torpedoes' and explosive ram-boats. The Italian Air Force formed a special commando unit, ADRA, before the 1943 surrender; it was tasked with attacking Allied airfields and communications in North Africa. Men from ADRA and Army paratroopers formed the new 'Folgore' Regiment, which also continued to fight alongside German forces until 1945. In both cases, the pro-Allied Italian forces also formed 'mirror' units to fight alongside US and British forces, including the Recce Squadron 'F'. Featuring rare photographs and specially commissioned artwork, this book tells the story of the little-known elite forces fielded by Italy's navy and air force in World War II, some of whose successors remain in service with today's Italian armed forces.

This is an interesting, well-illustrated book that looks at the familiar (10th MAS) and unfamiliar (all the rest), and gives a broader picture of the Italian Special Forces than is often the case- historyofwar.org Fine artwork by Mark Stacey and some photographs that are considered rare illustrate the intriguing story of these elite Italian units in this 64-page paperback. - Toy Soldier & Model Figure

Piero Crociani acts as a consultant for the Italian Army Historical Branch and is the author of several articles, essays and books on Italian military history. Amongst his published words are The Albanians in the Italian Armed Forces (Rome, 2001); The Neapolitan Army 1806–15 (Milan, 1987) and, together with Virgilio Ilari and Giancarlo Boeri, A Military History of Murat's Kingdom (1806–15) (Milan, 2007).

Pier Paolo Battistelli earned his PhD in Military History at the University of Padua. A scholar of German and Italian politics and strategy throughout World War II, he is active in Italy and abroad writing titles and essays on military history subjects. He is also a contributor to the Italian Army Historical Office and has written numerous books for Osprey.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781849088572
ISBN 10	1849088578
Title	Italian Navy & Air Force Elite Units & Special Forces 1940–45
Author	Piero Crociani
Series	Elite
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Osprey Publishing
Year published	2013-01-22
Number of pages	64
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.