To the three most infamous dictators of the 20th century, the
airplane was much more than a way to get from Stalag A to Gulag
B. - By Von Hardesty - Air & Space magazine, May 2005 (Page 2 of
8) By 1920, Mussolini was ready to take flying lessons. R.J.B.
Bosworth’s Mussolini recounts that he trained at the Arcore
airfield, north of Milan, and greatly enjoyed flying, quickly
learning rudimentary aerobatics. Soon after completing 18 solo
flights, he survived a crash, walking away from the wrecked
airplane with only minor scratches on his face and a twisted
knee. The mishap did not slow Mussolini’s rise in Italian
politics. His stump speeches—delivered in a strutting, highly
animated style—attracted a mass following. His muscular
physique, truculent jutting jaw, and dark piercing eyes set him
apart from other politicians. In 1922, Mussolini gained
political control of Italy when his followers, the Blackshirts,
made their highly theatrical March on Rome. Mussolini quickly
moved aviation to the forefront of his aut