Giovanni Nicelli

Sergente Giovanni Nicelli was an Italian World War I flying ace. He was credited with eight or nine confirmed aerial victories (sources vary), and died in service to his nation on 5 May 1918.

Giovanni Nicelli
Born27 October 1893
Lugagnano Val d'Arda, Kingdom of Italy
Died5 May 1918 (1918-05-06) (aged 24)
Montello (hill), Kingdom of Italy
Service/branchCorpo Aeronautico Militare
RankSergente
Unit79a Squadriglia
AwardsThree Silver awards of the Medal for Military Valor
French Croix de Guerre

Early life

Nicelli was born on 27 October 1893 in Lugagnano Val d'Arda, Province of Piacenza, the Kingdom of Italy.[1]

World War I

First records available of Nicelli show him as a Caporale, piloting a Nieuport 17 for 79a Squadriglia in April 1917. His first aerial victory claim was reported for 14 June 1917. He would post 11 more claims before his death.[1]

As 79a Squadriglia was drawn into the Battle of Caporetto towards the end of 1917, Nicelli forced down two Austro-Hungarian airplanes and won his first Silver award of the Medal for Military Valor. On 30 January 1918, he claimed his sixth victory and was once again awarded the Silver Medal for Military Valor. He continued his successes until 4 May 1918, when he tackled seven enemy aircraft singlehandedly, and was credited with downing one of them. He was also credited with a second victory that day, in a separate action. The following day, 5 May 1918, Giovanni Nicelli's Nieuport 27 broke up while in flight, killing him.[1]

List of aerial victories

See also Aerial victory standards of World War I

Confirmed victories are numbered and listed chronologically. Unconfirmed victories are denoted by "u/c" and may or may not be listed by date.

No. Date/time Aircraft Foe Result Location Notes
u/c 14 June 1917 Nieuport 17 Enemy aircraft Mount Verena Victory originally confirmed, but disallowed postwar
1 25 October 1917 @ 0800 hours Enemy aircraft Forced to land Marcesina
2 7 November 1917 circa 1615 hours Enemy aircraft Forced to land Fonsazo Awarded Silver Medal for Military Valor
3 7 December 1917 @ 1130 hours Enemy aircraft Val d'Assa
4 13 December 1917 ca. 1130 hours Enemy aircraft Asiago
5 30 January 1918 @ 1000 hours Enemy two-seater Col d'Eshele, Asiago Awarded Silver Medal for Military Valor
u/c 4 February 1918 ca. 1100 hours Black enemy fighter craft Valstagna Claim shared with Antonio Reali
6 5 February 1918 ca. 0830 hours Enemy two-seater Forced to land Case Girardi Shared with Marziale Cerutti
7 13 February 1918 @ 0915 hours Enemy fighter Marcesina
u/c 24 February 1918 Enemy aircraft Mount Grappa
8 4 May 1918 @ 0850 hours Nieuport 27 Enemy aircraft Montello Austro-Hungarians reported no matching loss
9 4 May 1918 @ 1025 hours Nieuport 27 Enemy fighter Montello Austro-Hungarians reported no matching loss[1][2]

The victory claims of Italian aces were scrutinized postwar by a commission from Italy's Military Intelligence branch. They disallowed Nicelli's first victory, crediting him with eight confirmed victories.[3] Aviation historians credit him with nine.[1]

Endnotes
  1. Franks et al 1997, pp. 147-148.
  2. The Aerodrome Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  3. Franks et al 1997, p. 116.

References
  • Franks, Norman; Guest, Russell; Alegi, Gregory. Above the War Fronts: The British Two-seater Bomber Pilot and Observer Aces, the British Two-seater Fighter Observer Aces, and the Belgian, Italian, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Fighter Aces, 1914–1918: Volume 4 of Fighting Airmen of WWI Series: Volume 4 of Air Aces of WWI. Grub Street, 1997. ISBN 1-898697-56-6, ISBN 978-1-898697-56-5.


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