Prosecco

45°42'12"N 013°45'35"E

Runway: 14/32 - 400meters/1400feet - grass

Prosecco airfield (aerodromo Prosecco, also known as Triest-Prosecco, Sgonico airfield, Military Airport Prosek or Aerocampo Di Prosecco) was an airfield 435 kilometers north-northwest of Rome.
I could not trace when the airfield was built exactly, but it already existed during World War I, when it was bombed several times by British combat aircraft between January and May 1917. At the time the airfield was in use by an reconnaissance and artillery fire adjustment base. At the time, the province of Trieste was still part of the Austro-Hongarian Empire.

After 1918 the region became part of Italy and the airfield fell into disuse until 1920. From 1920 until 1934 the airfield was used as an explosives storage site. A large explosion took place at the site in 1929. Between 1935 and 1940 the airfield was reverted to grassland.

Between 1940 and 1943 the field became a fuel depot for the Italian Engineer Corps. After the fall of the fascist state in 1943 the base was abandoned again.


No photos from before 1990 have been located

After World War II the province of Trieste became the Free Territory of Trieste. The airfield was located in Zone A, guarded by TRUST (TRieste United States Troops) and BETFOR (British Element Trieste Force). The major combat unit in TRUST was the 351st Infantry Regiment, which included an air observation unit made up of a half dozen Stinson L-5 spotter aircraft. They rediscovered Prosecco, the only suitable 'airport' in the territory. They restored the camp in 1948 and equipped it with two PSP runways: 06-24 and 14-32. The Americans referred to the airfield as 'Military Airport Prosek'.
TRUST left the region in 1954, turning command to the Aeronautica Militare Italiana (Italian Air Force). In this period the AMI removed the 06-24 runway. Then, on 27 February 1957 they turned over the airfield to the Esercito Italiano (Italian Army). They operated from the airfield with Piper L18C and L-21B aircraft. Later they switched to Agusta-Bell AB205 helicopters.
In 1995 military activities at the airfield ended.

The area became property of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia Autonomous Region, specifically the Regional Directorate of the Protezione Civile (Civil Protection). At various times since the fifties, the Triestians had been trying to get to use to the terrain for air sports activities. The Aeroclub of Trieste even obtained a joint use agreement with the Army, but it was never applied. In 1990 the aerocloub created the Gruppo amici del Volo di Trieste ("Friends Group of Flight in Trieste") which, albeit with considerable difficulty, managed to get occasional and limited use of the field. Since January 2003 the core of the association's activities consists of flying ultralight aircraft. It remains a Protezione Civile property though.


Approach chart for the airfield in 2008 (ulm.it)


Landing at Aerocampo Di Prosecco (metacafe.com).