| Sebastiano Bedendo | |
|---|---|
| Born | 18 July 1895 Rovigo, Italy |
| Died | 24 August 1935 Spinosa di Ottiglio, Italy |
| Allegiance | Italy |
| Service/branch | Flying service |
| Rank | Sottotenente |
| Unit | 42a Squadriglia, 48a Squadriglia, 72a Squadriglia, 71a Squadriglia, |
| Awards | Medal for Military Valor (1 bronze and 1 silver award) |
Sottotenente Sebastiano Bedendo was a World War I flying ace credited with five aerial victories.[1]
Contents |
Bedendo was conscripted into the artillery when Italy entered World War I. His time with the cannons was brief, as he quickly transferred to aerial observer duty in a kite balloon section. From there, he somehow won his pilot's wings in the Summer of 1916. His first assignment was flying reconnaissance on the battle fronts of northern Italy. Only in the wake of the Battle of Caporetto did he find his way to the single seat of a fighter. He then returned to the northern front, where he seems to have bounced assignments between 72a Squadriglia and 71a Squadriglia. On 19 March 1918, he began a string of aerial victory claims that, by competing accounts, made him an ace with five confirmed wins and four unconfirmed ones. By both accounts, he began scoring on 29 July 1918, followed by a certain second win the next day. From there the accounts differ, but in any case, after scoring his fifth win, he transferred out.[2][1] On 20 October 1918, he joined the "Squadron of Aces", 91a Squadriglia, by invitation. There he participated in the war's final offensive.[2]
Bedendo returned to his engineering studies at university. After graduation, he joined the newly formed Regia Aeronautica in 1924, in their engineering branch.[2]
In 1933, he set two world aeronautical class records using a Nuvoli N5 light aircraft. A French Farman 239 took one of the records, and Bedendo seized it back in 1935, using a modernized Nuvoli N.5 RR.[2]
On 24 August 1935, Nuvoli N.5 Cab. I-NUBE lost a wing in flight. The crew of Sebastiano Bedendo, Giovanni Testore, and Giovanni Nicastro did not survive the crash.[2]