Ítalo Piaggi
Lieutenant-Colonel Ítalo Ángel Piaggi (17 March 1935; San Fernando, Argentina – 31 July 2012, Buenos Aires) was an Argentine Army commander who was involved in the Battle of Goose Green in the Falklands War.[1]
The defending Argentine army forces known as Task Force Mercedes consisted of the Lieutenant-Colonel Italo Piaggi's 12th Infantry Regiment (RI 12) and a company of the 25th Infantry Regiment (RI 25).
The day after the battle Lieutenant-Colonel Piaggi surrendered all Argentine forces, approximately 1,000 men, including 202 men of the Air Force. He was later drummed out of the army in disgrace.
In 1986, he wrote the book Ganso Verde (a calque of "Goose Green", using the colour green to translate [Village] Green), where he makes a strong defence of his decisions during the war and criticises the lack of logistical support from the Argentine commander-in-chief in Stanley.[2] He estimates that Task Force Mercedes only disposed 28 per cent of their intended firepower regarding artillery, mortars and heavy machine guns.[3]
Notes
- "Falleció el Veterano de Guerra Ítalo Ángel Piaggi" (in Spanish). El Malvinense. 1 August 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
- Piaggi, pp. 64, 69, 90-91, 102-103
- Piaggi, page 169 (Appendix)
References
- Harclerode, Peter (May 1, 1993). Para!: Fifty Years of the Parachute Regiment (Reprint ed.). Arms and Armour. ISBN 1-85409-097-6.
- Fitzgibbon, Spencer. Not Mentioned in Dispatches. ISBN 0-7188-3016-4.
- Kenney Oak, David J. 2 Para's Battle for Darwin Hill and Goose Green. Square Press April 2006. ISBN 0-9660717-1-9. See here
- Falklands War Binderbook - Author Information Pending
- Andrada, Benigno: Guerra aérea en las Malvinas. Ed. Emecé, 1983. ISBN 950-04-0191-6. (in Spanish)
- Piaggi, Italo A.: Ganso Verde. Ed. Planeta, 1986. ISBN 950-37-0186-4. (in Spanish)