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Italian Air Force Museum, Part 2

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Following the outbreak of the war the company did produce a further 8 catapult examples, the prototype of which was tested by Lieutenant Giulio Reiner who took off from the seaplane carrier RN (Royal Ship) Giuseppe Miraglia on the 9th May 1942. Catapult RE2000s were then embarked on the battleships Vittorio Veneto, Littorio and Roma and also equipped the 1st Naval Forces Squadron. This example is the prototype flown by Warrant Officer Luigi Guerrieri who was forced to ditch due to engine failure off Porto Venere (La Spezia) on the 16th April 1943. Recovered from the seabed on the 4th December 2013 the remains have only undergone cleaning and consolidation work.

Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp
Facts from Museum placards, website and internet; occasional typos or incorrect spelling may occur!

Having toured the Troster and Velo Hangars we now enter the Badoni Hangar, which covers the period from the 1930s until the late 1940s. The 60 meter by 60 meter metal hangar was constructed in 1930 by the Badoni Company to provide maintenance space and shelter for the large seaplanes then operating out of the base.

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Graham Gauld: Jean Guichet

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Photo by Graham Gauld

Story by Graham Gauld

The facts are there in plain sight. The French, who were responsible for developing all automobile racing from the very beginning, have never truly been credited for their successes in the past thirty years.

Perhaps this is because the youthful motor sporting enthusiast these days is totally wedded to Formula 1, and since 1950 only four French drivers have become World Drivers’ Champions – all of them named Alain Prost!

If, however, you turn to sports cars the picture is different with French drivers being in the winning car at Le Mans 27 times since 1950. I admit this comparison may appear ludicrous bearing in mind that at Le Mans you can have up to three drivers to one winning car, but the point is the French have tended to be more successful in sports cars than in Formula 1. This story is about one of them, Jean Guichet, who will be 98 years of age in August this year.

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A Tale of Two Ghias

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1953 Turin Motor Lancia Ghia Show Car at the McPherson College Car Show in Kansas. Could there be two?

By the Editor

Last week Bob Dinkins (you will learn more about Bob below) sent us a few photos from the College Automotive Restoration Students Car Show held at McPherson College in Kansas, on May 3rd. Dinkins asked if we’d be interested in a few photos of a rare Lancia. Of course!

We recalled that there was a similar car shown in VeloceToday. But when, where? Ah, speak, memory. [Read more…] about A Tale of Two Ghias

Jochen Mass, 1946-2025

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Siena, 2023 Mille Miglia

Story, photos and video by Bob Cullinan

He lived a life that was both heroic and tragic, and will go down in history as one of the most versatile, gregarious drivers in the sport. Jochen Mass triumphed in Formula 1 and at Le Mans, winning the Spanish Grand Prix in 1975 and the 24 Hours in 1989. But his triumphs were tempered by tragedy. Mass was declared the winner at Spain in ‘75 after Rolf Stommelen’s car hit a protective barrier, resulting in the death of multiple spectators. Five years later, a collision with the car driven by Gilles Villeneuve at the 1982 Belgian GP led to the death of the Canadian racer.

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The Treasures of the Italian Air Force Museum

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Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

For an enthusiast of old aeroplanes, the view from the excellent, and rather well priced, cafe at the Italian Air Force Museum can’t be beat. You can look out over the tranquil waters of Lake Bracciano and wonder what it must have looked like back in the 1920s, when it was buzzing with seaplane activity, as Vigna di Valle was a seaplane base for the Regia Aeronautica.

Or you could look into the museum and admire what I consider to be the crown jewels of the collection, namely the bright red racing seaplanes that once competed for the coveted Schneider Trophy in the 1920s and 30s.

Last week it was the turn of the Lancias of the Lancia Club Italia to steal the limelight, this week it is the turn of the first two of five hangers. Just hang in there with us…

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When in Rome….

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Story and photos by Jonathan Sharp

This piece should have had the title “The Anantara Concorso Rome” which we were to cover for VeloceToday on April 25, but following the death of the Pope the event was rightly cancelled out of respect. Still, flights had been booked and accommodations reserved, so we were still going, if feeling a bit sad. Little did we know that we’d have a very pleasant surprise just north of Rome.

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Put on a Happy Face

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When the artwork is more interesting than the chassis number.

By Pete Vack, photos by Jim Sitz and Allen R. Kuhn

VeloceToday originally ran this photo in September 2023, and in an effort to find the chassis number and owner of the 550 Spyder Richie Ginther drove one fine day at Santa Barbara, and perhaps the meaning of the Happy Face on the front, we asked our readers to help.

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Cuba, 1957: When Heroes Raced

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By Pete Vack
Photos by Robert Pauley
From the VeloceToday Archives, October 2017

When, in 1957, Robert Pauley wanted to go to Cuba “…to get a chance to see his heroes”, he may well have added “before it was too late,” for he would bear witness to the end of a very great era of motor racing.

It was not the end, not yet. But the Cuban Grand Prix held at the dawn of 1957, was the beginning of the end of an era. Just ahead would be four significant occurrences: the rear-engine revolution, the end of the Ferrari-Maserati wars, the retirement of Juan Manuel Fangio, and the tragic deaths of a high number of first class drivers born between 1926 and 1932. Not only would we lose the hero drivers, but the classic front engine race car, the constant danger, the sportsmanship, and the romance. We need not apologize for borrowing the dramatic title from Wagner…read on and you’ll realize that this was heavy stuff indeed.

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And How! Observations on Ferrari now in Softcover

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By Staff

The Acclaimed publisher of custom limited edition automotive books Velocity Group is releasing Observations on Ferrari 1946 – 1966 The King’s Eyes in soft cover.

This fantastic fully illustrated history takes the reader from the rubble of post-World War Two Italy to the height of the Mid-Century Era, addressing every F1 race and the newly established World Sportscar Championship as Ferrari defines high performance in these arenas. [Read more…] about And How! Observations on Ferrari now in Softcover

Cars of the Vatican and Crankshaft Magazine

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This 1946 Fiat 1100 Spider by Frua was featured in the very first Crankshaft magazine…a hint of things to come.

Story by Pete Vack
All photos courtesy Crankshaft magazine unless otherwise noted

Richard Lentinello: No introduction needed

Like the editor and most of our readers, at an early age Richard Lentinello was captivated by Road & Track and other car magazines, which fed the passion for cars he still has today. He wrote“…my journey started over 50 years ago as a young teenager reading Car Craft and Super Stock. Then came Autoweek, Road & Track, Thoroughbred and Classic Cars, Automobile Quarterly and Supercar Classics, having spent hours immersed in their pages while sitting in our spacious 20 x 20 backyard in Brooklyn.” (Crankshaft #1)

But unlike his fellow travelers, Lentinello would become the editor-in-chief of nine car magazines, including Hemmings Motor News and Hemmings Classic Car, Special Interest Autos, Hemmings Muscle Machines and Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car.

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Lella Lombardi, the Tigress from Turin

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Italian Lella Lombardi is unique in Formula One history as the first and only woman to score a championship point in the seventy-five years of the modern Formula One championship since 1950. (Rothmans 5000 European Championship, Mallory Park, England, October 13, 1974) Photo by Jeff Allison

Story and photos by Jeff Allison

Maria Grazia “Lella” Lombardi is the only woman to score points in a world championship Formula One race. In the seventy-five years of the modern Formula One championship, only five women have entered a Formula One race and only two have qualified and raced. Italian Maria Teresa de Filippis (1958-1959) was the first, and it would be fifteen years before another woman, Lella Lombardi, would qualify and race in Formula One.

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Imola WEC 6 hours: Hypercars

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Ferrari wins at Imola!

Story and photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt

Hypercar class

The World Endurance Championship, created in 1953 and which has had several names, notably the World Sportscar Championship, disappeared in 1992, before being reborn in 2012 under the name of World Endurance Championship (abbreviated as WEC). The prototype category was initially reserved for cars meeting the LMP1 regulations, but as these demanded increasingly substantial budgets, Audi and Porsche left the series amid Dieselgate, with only Toyota remaining loyal. Since 2021, a new regulation, called Hypercar, has been in force and was designed to reduce costs and attract new manufacturers.

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