Italo Balbo's Flight to the 1933 Chicago World's Fair

by Don Fiore

Overview

Trace the monumental story of a transatlantic flight to the Century of Progress Exposition.

In an era when transatlantic travel was still dangerous, Italy caused a sensation by announcing its participation in the upcoming Century of Progress World's Fair would be highlighted by an unprecedented formation flight from Rome to Chicago. Led by renowned aviator Italo Balbo, the squadron of two dozen seaplanes accomplished a daring navigational feat that was commemorated by a number of civic monuments that stand in Chicago to this day. Since the United States fought Italy in World War II, the monuments have weathered decades of intermittent controversy. Don Fiore provides a fascinating account of the complex legacy of Balbo's flight.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467155342
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	11/06/2023
Series:	The History Press
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Born in Chicago, Don Fiore has been a lifelong student of Italian history, an anti-defamation activist, a writer and a columnist on subjects of Italian and Italian American cultural and historical interest for Fra Noi and other local and national publications. He has been a musician and assistant manager of Caliendo's Banda Napoletana, one of the few remaining Italian-style symphonic bands in the United States, for the past five decades. In 2004, he was officially conferred the title of Cavaliere (Knight) by the president of Italy for his work promoting and preserving Italian cultural heritage.