6th Pioneer Regiment (Italy)

The 6th Pioneer Regiment (Italian: 6° Reggimento Genio Pionieri) is a military engineer regiment of the Italian Army based in the Cecchignola quarter of Rome. Today the regiment is administratively assigned to the army's Engineer Command and the army's sole pioneer unit, whose focus, unlike the army's other engineer units, is on rear area construction tasks.[3]

6th Pioneer Regiment
6° Reggimento Genio Pionieri
Regimental coat of arms
Active1 November 1926 - 8 September 1943
4 September 1993 - today[1]
Country Italy
BranchItalian Army
RoleCombat engineers
Part ofEngineer Command
Garrison/HQCecchignola
Motto(s)"Per aspra via ad aspra meta"
Anniversaries24 June 1918 - Second Battle of the Piave River
Decorations
1x Gold Medal of Army Valour
1x Bronze Medal of Civil Valour
1x Silver Cross of Army Merit[2]
Insignia
Pioneers gorget patches

History

During November 1926 the Royal Italian Army raised a series of engineer regiments, among them the 6th Engineer Regiment in Bologna with the functions of a depot; i.e. the regiment only raised units for other formations. One of the units the depot raised was the 54th Craftsmen Company for the 21st Infantry Division "Granatieri di Sardegna". During World War II the 54th company was deployed to Slovenia and Croatia, until Italy changed sides with the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943 and the regiment and company were disbanded.[1]

On 1 May 1952 the Engineer Battalion "Granatieri di Sardegna" was raised in Rome as the engineer unit of the Infantry Division "Granatieri di Sardegna". The battalion was given the traditions of the 54th Craftsmen Company.

6th Pioneer Battalion "Trasimeno"

During the 1975 army reform the Engineer Battalion "Granatieri di Sardegna" was reorganized as a support battalion for the Central Military Region, which received the war flag and traditions of the 6th Engineer Regiment. Engineer battalions, formed or reorganized during the 1975 army reform, were named for a lake if they supported a corps or military region, or named for a river if they supported a division or brigade: the 6th Pioneer Battalion was named "Trasimeno" after Lake Trasimeno.

Recent Times

On 4 September 1993 the battalions was elevated to regiment without changing its size or composition and on 1 December 1997 the regiment passed from the Central Military Region to the army's Engineer Grouping. After the 1997 Umbria and Marche earthquake the regiment was deployed to the affected areas, where it remained until May 1998, earning a Bronze Medal of Civil Valour for its service.[2]

On 24 January 2005 the regiment activated a second pioneer battalion, which was named "Nemi" after Lake Nemi near Rome.

After the August 2016 earthquake in Central Italy the regiment was deployed to the disaster area and remained there until April 2017, building shelters and clearing debris, and providing engineering services to the affected communities. For its service the regiment was awarded Gold Medal of Army Valour.[4]

Current structure
A VTMM "Orso" Route Clearing vehicle of the Italian engineer corps

As of 2019 the 6th Pioneer Regiment consists of:[5]

  • Regimental Command, in Cecchignola
    • Command and Logistic Support Company
    • Pioneer Battalion "Trasimeno"
    • Pioneer Battalion "Nemi"

The Command and Logistic Support Company fields the following platoons: C3 Platoon, Transport and Materiel Platoon, Medical Platoon, Commissariat Platoon, and EOD Platoon. Each of the two pioneer battalions fields three construction companies with the necessary equipment to build camps, airfields, lodging, roads, etc.

References
  1. "6° Reggimento Genio Pionieri - La Storia". Italian Army. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
  2. "6° Reggimento Genio Pionieri - Il Medagliere". Italian Army. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  3. "6° Reggimento Genio Pionieri". Italian Army. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  4. "6° Reggimento Genio Pionieri". Quirinale - Presidenza della Repubblica. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  5. "6° Reggimento Genio Pionieri". Ministero della Difesa. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.