La Carona

The second part of the course (Field Training Exercise) takes place in Fornovo, in the province of Parma, in the former air force base “La Carona” managed by Carona s.r.l.
“La Carona” was created as a fuel storage depot to power the air fleets in Northern and Central Italy and was built in great secrecy in the 1930s. Fornovo di Taro’s fuel storage facility takes the denomination of the 63rd air force subsidiary fuel deposit.
It is composed of three different areas, Zona Greto Taro, self-contained division, in which the tankers for transporting fuel and all the other vehicles, as well as accommodation for the families of officers and non-commissioned officers on duty at the depot were employed; Services Area, the headquarters of the Command in which the offices, the infirmary, the troop dormitories, the defense division and the keg department were located, the actual operation of the depot; La Carona area, for the storage of fuel in underground deposits. In Carona, indeed, 5 underground tanks are built, made of reinforced concrete and covered with metal, which are camouflaged by the forest, protected by at least 5/6 meters of soil and connected by underground tunnels. The base was officially inaugurated in 1936 and remained on duty until 1999.

Nowadays, thanks to the work of Carona Srl, new life has been given to the facility which is configured as a unique training area of its kind with its 33.000 square meters of extension, 8.000 square meters of walkable underground surface, an off-road 4×4 route, Aviosuperfice for ZAE (Helicopter landing area), mixed technical pedestrian path with obstacles, slopes and inaccessible areas, underground area with fiber optic network and technological systems for training and tests, all piloted and controlled by a multimedia control room. The base, reserved and totally fenced with anti-climb fence, has also an armoured area, meeting room, bedrooms, dining room with kitchen, gym and tennis / soccer field.

The urban and off-road driving packages are implemented by Centro Internazionale Guida Sicura de Adamich in Varano de’ Melegari, while the sessions on Weapons, Mines, UXOs and IEDs are implemented by Istituto Ricerche Esplosivistiche (IRE) at specific locations.