Today, in the presence of the President of the Italian Republic, Fiumicino ‘Leonardo da Vinci’ Airport celebrated its 65th anniversary. Since its inauguration on 20 August 1960, at the peak of the post-war economic boom, Fiumicino Airport has accompanied the country’s growth, becoming Italy's main gateway to the world, and in recent years it has established itself as the best airport in Europe and among the world's leading airports, becoming  a true a reference point for the quality of its passenger services and innovation.

The ceremony, promoted by Aeroporti di Roma (ADR), the Mundys Group company operating the Rome airport system —also including Ciampino ‘G. B. Pastine’ Airport— retraced the key milestones in the evolution of ‘Leonardo da Vinci’ Airport which will soon surpass, for the first time, 50 million travellers per year.

The event opened with a visit by President Sergio Mattarella to the Innovation Hub at Terminal 1. This is the first startup accelerator based in a European airport and is the core of ADR's innovation strategy. Here, young representatives of startups Whill, Assaia, Proteso and Ailytics, already operating in the airport, have presented their projects to the President of the Republic, accompanied by members of Innovation Cabin Crew, the ADR team that work on the development and growth of startup projects. The presentation has been also attended by the top managers of Edizione, Chairman Alessandro Benetton and CEO Enrico Laghi; the top managers of Mundys, Chairman Giampiero Massolo and CEO Andrea Mangoni; and the top managers of Aeroporti di Roma, Chairman Vincenzo Nunziata and CEO Marco Troncone, together with ENAC’s Chairman Pierluigi Di Palma.

The Innovation Hub experience reflects ADR's vision, which is based on a drive to invest in sustainable development and a participatory approach that places people and young people at the centre of the growth strategies of the entire Group. This model has led the Airports Council International (ACI) World to recognise Fiumicino Airport as the best airport in Europe for service quality, for eight consecutive years.

“Aeroporti di Roma celebrates a memorable anniversary while looking forward to the future, as a proper laboratory for innovation. Thanks to the work carried out in recent years and the constant collaboration between the public and private sectors, Leonardo da Vinci has become the best airport in Europe for service quality and one of the most sustainable airports in the world. As shareholders, we are proud to have supported this continuous path of renewal, which has been implemented also thanks to an investment of more than EUR 3 billion over the last ten years. We will continue to play our role, supporting the sustainable development of the airport, which will generate important and long-lasting benefits for the local area. I sincerely thank, on behalf of the entire Group, Mr Sergio Mattarella, President of the Italian Republic, who honoured us with his presence, while also meeting the young entrepreneurs of our Innovation Hub", Alessandro Benetton, Edizione’s Chairman and Mundys Vice-president, said.

The ceremony has opened with the National Anthem performed by artist Chiara Civello, followed by greetings from Fiumicino Mayor Mario Baccini, who stated, “For us citizens of Fiumicino, the airport is not just a place of transit or work, but also an integral part of our identity. A modern, dynamic city, open to the world, has developed around it. As the Municipal Administration, our commitment is to combine the economic and employment growth generated by this extraordinary infrastructure with the protection of the territory and the quality of life of our citizens. Leonardo da Vinci Airport at Fiumicino is at the same time the Gate of Italy to the world and the Gate of the world to Italy”.

ENAC President Pierluigi Di Palma emphasised "It is a true a privilege for me to have had the opportunity to illustrate, in front of the President of the Republic and here at Fiumicino, our country's gateway and shining example, the path to the rebirth of Italian air transport in the post COVID-19 era. After that unprecedented crisis, the sector is once again among the most dynamic in the country, an engine of development and a guarantee of mobility for more than 200 million passengers, with a view to sustainability and intermodal integration. This rebirth is based on the untiring work of women and men in the sector who, thanks to far-sighted political action, have made the 'rock restart' possible after the pandemic, rebuilding not only an economic system, but also an intangible bridge between different cultures, based on safety, the centrality of the passenger and the protection of the rights of passengers with reduced mobility".

In his speech, ADR's CEO Marco Troncone recalled words of encouragement the Italian President addressed to the entire air transport sector during his last visit in 2022, at the height of the post-pandemic recovery, and retraced the evolution of 'Leonardo da Vinci' Airport as a driver of Italian societal and industrial growth. Mr Troncone emphasised the strategic value of the 9 billion euros sustainable Development Plan, entirely self-financed, which will ensure the necessary capacity to strengthen the competitiveness of Italy in the global air transport context, confirming the excellence of services and utmost respect for the environment and the local communities and territory in the medium to long term. The project, presented to ENAC in 2021, envisages a reorganisation of the runway system, shifting the centre of gravity of operations eastwards as well as the creation of a large park of archaeological interest open to citizens. All this will help significantly reduce the acoustic impact on inhabited areas.

“A plan”, the CEO of Aeroporti di Roma said in his speech, "that combines attractiveness and protection of the territory, progress and beauty, employment and sustainability, maximising the value of the local community to which we belong and with which we maintain a continuous and constructive dialogue. It is certainly a great industrial project, but, for us, above all it represents a civic commitment since such a strategic infrastructure belongs to the entire Country and is the result of a vision that takes shape every day, thanks to the people who make it possible”.

The celebration - hosted at Terminal 5, which since years has been dedicated to sensitive flights, recently renovated and now also used for ADR's major events - was attended, among others, by Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Hon. Edoardo Rixi, President of the Lazio Region Francesco Rocca, and Prefect of Rome Lamberto Giannini.

Before the ceremony, the President of the Republic attended the unveiling of 'Aeroporto’ (‘Airport’), an artwork by young artist Camilla Gurgone, consisting of two aluminium panels that symbolise the encounter between humanity and technology. Inside the terminal, 'Leonardo, uomo illuminato' (‘Leonardo, enlightened man’) by Marco Lodola, celebrating the innovative and creative genius of Leonardo Da Vinci, after whom the airport is named.

On the sidelines of the event, ADR presented the President of the Italian Republic with a commemorative silver medal minted by Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (the Italian State mint), inspired by the original 1960 design by Bulgarian sculptor Assen Peikov, author of the famous statue of Leonardo da Vinci that welcomes passengers at the entrance of the airport.