Shot down before your wedding

With special thanks to Thorleif Persson for supplying primary source materials!

Sometime during the beginning of April 1941, the chief editor of the Swedish newspapaer Stockholms-Tidningen, Bӧrje Brilioth, received a letter from a Gunnar D. Kumlien, a Swedish journalist reporting from Rome. The letter contained an informal request for information concerning the fate of Sottotenente (Lieutenant) Niccolò Cobolli Gigli, a pilot in the Italian Air Force, the Regia Aeronautica Italiana. According to the letter, Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli had served in a fighter unit in Albania. His unit had encountered a group of “Spitfires on March 4 between 2:30 and 3:30” and Cobolli Gigli had been shot down in flames “in the Kimara [today’s Himarë] sector off the Albanian coast on the Greek side of the lines.” The chief editor was now kindly asked to inquire with editor Carl Cederschiӧld of the Swedish Red Cross Commission to Greece in Athens as to the whereabouts of the Italian aviator.

Asking about an Italian aviator shot down in the Balkans via contacts in Sweden may not seem like the most direct course of action, but Niccolò Cobolli Gigli was the son of Giuseppe Cobolli Gigli, the former Fascist Minister of Public Works between 1935 and 1939 and now the President of Azienda Generale Italiana Petroli  (AGIP), the leading Italian petroleum company of the era. Niccolò was therefore directly related to one of the members of the Fascist aristocracy, and Giuseppe was in turn friendly with Kumlien: that Easter, Niccolò was to marry Gladys Persichetti, the cousin of Kumliens wife. Kumlien was now hoping that Brilioth, who was seen as an Axis sympathizer, would be able to call in a favor with Cederschiӧld in Athens and find out what had happened to Niccolò from the Allies while avoiding the arbitrary Greek censorship.

In the beginning of March 1941 the Italian Armed Forces in the Balkans were in a most unhappy state. Benito Mussolini had invaded Greece on October 28, 1940, with a 162,000 men strong force deployed in Albania, which was an Italian possession since 1939. Mussolini anticipated a swift victory, but the Greeks would have nothing of the sort. Greek General Papagos put up a fierce defense, and some 5,000 prisoners were taken by the Greeks when they defeated the Italian 3rd Alpini Division in the Pindus Mountains. A Greek counter-offensive was eventually launched from south and east of Albania, and on November 22 the Greeks defeated the Italian IX Army and captured Koritsa. The Greek advance continued, but it was finally halted by late January 1941, and a stalemate was reached, although almost half of Albania was in Greek hands. However, the Italian forces were planning a spring offensive, Operation Primavera, for March 9. 

Sottotenente Niccolò Cobolli Gigli was born on October 30, 1918 in Turin, and he may very well have been named after his paternal grandfather, Nicolò Cobol, an elementary school teacher and outdoorsman in Capodistria (today’s Koper in Slovenia). The grandfather was possibly named Nicolaus Combol in German, which was widely spoken in Istria at the time.

Niccolò’s father, Giuseppe, was originally an irredentist before joining the Fascist party in 1919, and Niccolò was one of three brothers, the other two being named Sergio and Antongiulio. Sergio served the Fascist state as a Marine based on an anti-submarine vessel, while Antongiulio served as an officer in the Army, where he would be wounded during the fighting in Russia. Niccolò joined the Air Force, and in 1941 he was probably recently deployed to Albania with the 355.a Squadriglia of the 24° Gruppo Autonomo based in Tirana since October 1940. The unit had originally been tasked with defending Sardinian ports with elderly Fiat CR.32 biplanes as part of the 52° Stormo, but it had since become an autonomous unit as well as being re-equipped with Fiat G.50 monoplanes and tasked with escorting bombers and transport aircraft. The 355.a Squadriglia was commanded by Capitano Ettore Foschini, a Spanish Civil War veteran with one victory who would eventually down five additional enemy aircraft over the Balkans while flying the Fiat CR. 42. The unit was initially deployed to Albania on October 28, 1940, also as an autonomous Squadriglia, before joining the 24° Gruppo Autonomo in March of 1941. It is not clear whether this amalgamation had occurred before Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli was shot down, but the units were in all likelihood stationed at the same airfield in Tirana.

Giuseppe Cobolli Gigli

The Regio Aeronautica had spent the fall of 1940 engaging the Greek Air Force, and by the end of the year the small Greek fighter force was severely depleted, although the bomber force remained fairly intact. But reinforcements were on their way, and on November 3, the first Royal Air Force (RAF) aircraft arrived in theatre. RAF Blenheim IF fighters flew their first patrol on November 4, 1940, and these aircraft were eventually joined by Gloster Gladiators, Hawker Hurricanes and Vickers Wellington bombers. The air battles over Greece and Albania intensified as winter turned into spring.

 Ettore Foschini (third from left) with fellow pilots near Stalino in May 1942 (http://forum.gp.dn.ua) 

 

During the morning of March 4, 1941, the Italian Navy sortied down the Albanian coast with a force composed of the cruiser Augusto Riboty, the destroyer Andromeda and three motor torpedo boats. This task force was escorted by Fiat G.50 bis and CR.42 fighters from the 24° Gruppo as they proceeded to shell the coastal road near Himarë and Porto Palermo, a stretch of approximately four miles in southern Albania. The RAF was aware of the Italian activity, and they immediately tasked 15 Blenheims with attacking the vessels. An escort was provided by ten Hurricanes and seventeen Gladiators. The forces were composed as follows:

·         nine Blenheims from 211 Squadron led by Squadron Leader Gordon-Finlayson

·         five Blenheims from 84 Squadron led by Squadron Leader Jones (one Blenheim failed to start)

·         six Hurricanes from 33 Squadron

·         four Hurricanes from 80 Squadron led by ace Flight Lieutenant Marmaduke Thomas St. John “Pat” Pattle, possibly the RAFs top-scoring pilot of the war

·         fourteen Gladiators from 112 Squadron

·         three Gladiators from 80 Squadron

The Italian ships were spotted approximately ten miles south of Vlorë at 3 PM, and the bombers attacked from line astern. Several near misses were noted, but no hits. Just as the Blenheims completed their bomb runs, six G.50bis bounced the Hurricanes, and Hurricane V7801 piloted by Warrant Officer Harry J. Goodchild was shot down in flames. Unfortunately for the Italians, they did not spot the Blenheims, as the RAF force was reported as “ten Spitfires, three Battles and twenty Gladiators.” As soon as the Blenheims started their return flights, the Hurricanes were ordered by Pattle to patrol the airspace above the Italian warships and engage enemy aircraft. A lone G.50bis attacked Pattle and his wingman Flying Officer Nigel Cullen in Hurricane V7288, but it was promptly shot down by Pattle just north of Himarë. Then a second G.50bis bounced Cullen, in turn shooting him down. Cullen’s Hurricane also crashed near Himarë. Following these engagements, the Hurricanes proceeded towards Vlorë, Yet another G.50bis was claimed by Pattle and then a third, which crashed in flames into the Vlorë harbor.

At this point in time nine Fiat CR.42s were seen below the Hurricanes, and the RAF pilots attacked right away. One of the CR.42s was hit by Pattle seen spinning down with smoke trailing from the engine. This was reported as a “probable.” Another Hurricane piloted by Sergeant Edward Hewett claimed one G.50bis and three out of eight CR.42s, all near Vlorë. Finally, Pilot Officer William Vale also claimed a G.50bis. The pilots of the Gladiators had also been busy, reporting combat with ten G.50bis and five CR.42s, with two claimed as being shot down, four “probables”, and another four damaged. The actions of March 4 led to Pattle being awarded a Bar to his Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC).

The surviving pilots of the 24° Gruppo claimed four Gladiators, one Spitfire and one Battle. Their losses included one aircraft from the 354.a Squadriglia piloted by Sergente Marcello De Salvia shot down and one CR.42 piloted by Tenente Francesco Rocca damaged and the pilot wounded. The 355.a Squadriglia lost one CR.42. This was in all likelihood the aircraft of Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli, an aircraft that may have been one of the the CR.42s reported as being by the Hurricanes, which indicated that Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli was shot down by either Flight Lieutenant Pattle or Sergeant Hewett.

Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli did not get to marry Gladys Persichetti that Easter. He may have parachuted out of his burning CR. 42, but he did not survive to return to the Italian lines or to become a prisoner of war. Whether this was due to injuries, enemy ground troops or some other reason is not known, but he was posthumously awarded the Silver Medal on November 7, 1941, and the Gold Medal on January 28, 1943. According to the dedication of the Gold Medal, Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli was a “Pilot of exceptional valor, a trusty and faithful comrade and a tenacious and aggressive fighter who helped shoot down several enemy aircraft. While fighting superior enemy forces he sped to the rescue of a wingman who was outnumbered…his last generous gesture was worthy of the noble boldness that characterized his life.”

*

Operation Primavera was launched by the Italians, but the results were less than impressive. Germany had offered to assist the Italians for some time, but Mussolini had refused. Hitler’s patience did run out after seeing that his southern flank could not be protected by the Italians. The German Wehrmacht invaded the Balkans on April 6, and Allied resistance in mainland Greece had ceased by April 30.

There is a path named after Niccolò’s grandfather, the Sentiero Niccolò Cobolli, that leads up to the Roman Catholic Temple of Monte Grisa, which is located on the edge of the Karst plateau just north of Trieste, close to the place where Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli lies buried in an Italian military cemetery. This is at times forgotten, and in November 2007 the Italian consul in Koper neglected his annual duty of placing a wreath at the cemetery, since the sons of Koper had been awarded in all five Gold Medals for Italy. The Italian Foreign Ministry considered the issue to be of grave concern, pointing out that ceremonies to the fallen Italians have been conducted since 1964. Hopefully the consul has been more diligent since.

It should also be mentioned that the wife-to-be of Sottotenente Cobolli Gigli did eventually marry to become the Countess Gladys Persichetti della Zonca, and she emigrated to Brazil in 1946. She moved back to Italy at some point later in her life, and passed away in 2008. She was survived by three children and another three grandchildren, one who is named Niccolò.

Pilots of 80 Squadron in early 1941 somewhere in Greece.
(Left to right) Sergeant Edward Hewett, Pilot Officer William Vale, Flying Officer P. T. Dowding, Flying Officer F. W. Hosken, Flying Officer Trevor-Roper (84 Squadron), Flight Lieutenant "Pat" Pattle, Flying Officer Flower and Pilot Officer J. Lancaster (Håkans Aviation Page)

Sources:

Mario Cervi. The Hollow Legions. Mussolini’s Blunder in Greece 1940-1941. New York: Doubleday, 1971

Chris Dunning. Courage Alone. The Italian Air Force 1940-1943. Manchester: Crècy Publishing, 2009

Giovanni Massimello and Giorgio Apostolo. Italian Aces of World War 2. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2000

Alexis Mehtidis. Air War over Greece and Albania 1939-1941. Garberville: Titger Lily Books, 2008

Christopher Shores and Brian Cull with Nicola Malizia. Air War for Yugoslavia, Greece and Crete 1940-41. London: Grub Street, 1987

Vem är det? Svensk biografisk handbook. Stockholm: P. A. Norstedt & Söners Förlag, 1977

Håkans Aviation Page. http://surfcity.kund.dalnet.se/index.html

Il Messaggero, February 14, 2010

Handlingar rörande Svenska Greklandskommissionen 1940-1949