As part of the Italian Republic Day celebrations, the NATO Defense College visited the ITS Cavour (550) aircraft carrier, the flagship of the Italian Navy, on Friday 3 June.
A delegation of 140 among Faculty, Staff, Course Members of SC118 and families, headed by Dr Richard D. HOOKER, Dean of NDC, along with BGen Roberto EPIFANIO, ITA Senior National Representative (SNR), was warmly welcomed on board by Capt. Aurelio DE CAROLIS, Commanding Officer of ITS Cavour. Inside the 2,500m² hangar, Capt. DE CAROLIS briefed the guests explaining some of the main features of the ship.
Although the flight-related features are the most fascinating, ITS Cavour is a very manoeuvrable and versatile ship, highly flexible in operational terms.
After the briefing, the NDC delegation was divided into groups and escorted inside the ship for a throughout visit, including a 2 deck fully equipped hospital which has 2 surgery rooms, x-ray facilities, 32 beds, a dentist’s surgery, a laboratory and a pharmacy. In 2010, when the ship took part in the Haiti earthquake “White Crane” relief operation, 160 surgeries were performed on board.
The visit concluded with a gift exchange as memory of this special celebration of the Italian National day.
NDC Public Affairs Office
Collège de Défense de l'OTAN 
